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BY>/ 

CHARLES  R.  ERDMAN 

Professor  of  Practical  Theology 
Princeton  Theological  Seminary 
Princeton,  New  Jersey 

Author  of  "The  Gospel  of  John,  an  Exposition,”  "The  Gospel  of 
Matthew,”  "The  Gospel  of  Mark,”  "The  General  Epistles,” 
"The  Acts,”  "The  Gospel  of  Luke,”  "Coming  to 
the  Communion,”  "  The  Return  of  Christ,” 

"Within  the  Gateways  of  the  Far  East,”  etc. 


PHILADELPHIA 
THE  WESTMINSTER  PRESS 
1923 


1924  1 


Copyright,  1923 
by 

F.  M.  Braselman 


The  Bible  text  printed  in  boldface  is  taken  from  the  American  Standard  Edition  of  the 
Revised  Bible,  copyright,  1901,  by  Thomas  Kelson  &  Sons,  and  is  used  by  permission. 


TO 

THE  GREATER  GLORY 
OF  THE 

CHIEF  SHEPHERD 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Foreword .  7 

Introduction . 9 

The  First  Epistle  of  Paul  to  Timothy . 15 

The  Second  Epistle  of  Paul  to  Timothy . 82 

The  Epistle  of  Paul  to  Titus . 131 


FOREWORD 


The  vital  interest  of  these  vigorous  little  letters  is  con¬ 
fined  to  no  one  class  of  readers.  Their  first  appeal  is  to 
Christian  pastors,  particularly  to  such  as  are  serving  in 
foreign  fields,  for  they  were  written  to  missionaries  in 
charge  of  infant  churches  in  lands  only  partly  evangelized ; 
to  such  they  offer  indispensable  instruction  for  daily  duties, 
and  constitute  an  inspired  handbook  of  pastoral  care. 
They  are  likewise  invaluable,  however,  to  all  persons  who 
wish  to  know  the  essential  faith  and  order  of  the  Christian 
Church;  and  their  supreme  appeal  is  to  such  as  seek  en¬ 
largement  of  life,  and  success  in  service.  They  bring  us  into 
the  living  presence  of  heroes  whose  words  and  deeds  have 
become  an  ennobling  influence  in  every  part  of  the  world. 
They  cannot  be  read  without  arousing  a  new  desire  to 
“fight  the  good  fight  of  the  faith,”  to  be  “rich  in  good 
works,”  to  “lay  hold  on  the  life  which  is  life  indeed.” 


INTRODUCTION 


The  New  Testament  letters  which  bear  the  names  of 
Timothy  and  of  Titus  have  been  styled,  for  at  least  a  cen¬ 
tury,  “The  Pastoral  Epistles.”  This  title  distinguishes 
them  from  letters  like  James  and  First  John,  which  were 
written  to  Christians  in  general,  from  others  like  Philippians 
and  Colossians,  which  were  addressed  to  certain  churches, 
or  from  strictly  personal  communications  such  as  Philemon. 

These  letters  were  directed  to  men  who  were  in  charge  of 
Christian  congregations;  they  contain  many  personal  ele¬ 
ments,  yet  they  are  essentially  of  an  official  character  and 
designed  to  guide  pastors  in  their  care  of  churches.  They 
are,  therefore,  properly  called  “The  Pastoral  Epistles,” 
both  because  of  their  content  and  by  way  of  eminence, 
for  there  exist  elsewhere  no  comparable  guides  in  pastoral 
service. 

That  these  letters  were  written  by  Paul,  in  the  last  years 
of  his  life,  need  not  be  doubted.  It  is  true  that  in  recent 
years,  for  the  first  time,  this  authorship  has  been  ques¬ 
tioned.  One  reason  assigned  has  been  the  difficulty  of 
finding  a  place  for  the  writing  of  these  letters  in  the  life  of 
the  apostle  as  it  is  recorded  in  The  Acts.  To  find  such  a 
place  is  more  than  difficult;  it  is  impossible;  for  the  historic 
and  personal  references  contained  in  these  letters  show  that 
they  must  have  been  composed  in  a  period  subsequent  to 
that  treated  by  Luke.  It  will  be  remembered  that  his 
narrative  closes  with  mention  of  an  imprisonment  of  two 
years’  duration  suffered  by  Paul  in  Rome.  The  Pastoral 
Epistles  seem  to  show  that  the  great  apostle  subsequently 
was  released,  as  he  had  expected,  and  as  his  Roman  judges 
admitted  he  deserved;  and  that  he  continued  his  travels 
and  his  care  of  the  churches.  Any  other  view  is  a  mere  sup¬ 
position  with  little,  if  any,  support. 

The  exact  order  of  events  cannot  be  determined  defi¬ 
nitely;  but  it  appears  that  in  resuming  his  missionary  jour- 

9 


10 


INTRODUCTION 


neys  Paul  realized  his  expressed  purpose  of  revisiting  the 
churches  in  Asia  Minor,  possibly  even  of  journeying  west¬ 
ward  to  Spain;  that  he  went  to  Crete,  where  he  left  Titus 
to  care  for  the  infant  church,  that  on  his  way  to  Macedonia 
he  commissioned  Timothy  to  take  charge  of  the  Christian 
community  in  Ephesus,  that  on  his  journey  to  Nicopolis 
he  wrote  the  instructions  contained  in  the  First  Epistle  to 
Timothy  and  in  the  Epistle  to  Titus,  that  he  was  subse¬ 
quently  arrested  and  wrote  the  Second  Epistle  to  Timothy 
from  his  dungeon  in  Rome,  where,  soon  after,  he  suffered 
the  martyrdom  which  this  last  letter  plainly  foretold. 

As  the  title  and  occasion  of  these  Pastoral  Epistles 
clearly  indicate,  their  substance  consists  chiefly  in  direc¬ 
tions  to  ministers  relative  to  the  organization  and  doctrine 
and  life  of  the  Christian  Church.  These  three  themes  are 
more  or  less  prominent  in  all  of  these  letters ;  yet  a  different 
subject  appears  to  be  emphasized  specifically  in  each  of  the 
three  epistles,  and  in  this  exact  order:  in  First  Timothy, 
Church  organization  holds  the  chief  place ;  Second  Timothy 
lays  the  stress  upon  sound  doctrine;  Titus  dwells  upon  the 
promotion  of  consistent  Christian  life.  This  order  is  logi¬ 
cal  ;  it  forms  a  climax ;  it  bears  a  message.  Church  govern¬ 
ment  is  not  an  end  in  itself ;  it  is  of  value  only  as  it  secures 
sound  doctrine;  and  doctrine  is  of  value  only  as  it  issues  in 
life. 

The  form  of  Church  government  outlined  in  the  Pastoral 
Epistles  is  not  described  in  detail ;  nor  does  its  exact  coun¬ 
terpart  seem  to  exist  in  any  modern  form  of  ecclesiastical 
polity,  whether  Episcopal  or  Presbyterian  or  Congrega¬ 
tional.  Probably  the  nearest  approach  to  it  is  found  to-day 
in  certain  mission  fields  where  considerable  elasticity  and 
liberty  are  allowed  temporarily  in  adopting  an  accepted 
form  or  organization  to  the  needs  of  infant  churches. 

The  main  features  of  the  system,  however,  are  clearly 
marked.  Evidently  the  chief  place  was  held  by  inspired 
apostles  who  had  been  appointed  by  Christ  and  who  were 
the  official  witnesses  of  his  resurrection. 

Timothy  and  Titus  appear  to  have  served  as  delegates 


INTRODUCTION 


11 


of  the  Apostle  Paul,  and  as  commissioned  to  represent  him 
in  the  accomplishment  of  definite  and  temporary  tasks. 
They  were  not  apostles,  but  rather  pastors  and  spiritual 
leaders,  and  their  activities  did  not  seem  to  interfere  with 
the  self-government  of  the  Christians  among  whom  they 
sojourned. 

In  each  local  church  the  duties  of  oversight  and  of 
teaching  devolved  upon  a  group  of  officers  variously  de¬ 
signated  as  “elders”  or  “presbyters”  or  “bishops”  or 
“overseers.”  All  of  these  were  on  a  perfect  equality,  and 
the  amount  of  their  salary  was  proportioned  to  their  fidelity 
and  service.  As  to  their  choice  and  ordination,  and  disci¬ 
pline,  special  instructions  were  given  by  Paul. 

There  existed  also  a  secondary  ministry,  namely  that  of 
the  “deacon,”  possibly  also  of  the  “deaconess”;  but  the 
exact  functions  of  these  officers  are  not  made  clear,  al¬ 
though  it  is  commonly  supposed  that  they  were  entrusted 
with  the  care  of  the  poor  and  with  the  temporal  affairs  of 
the  Church. 

The  high  personal  qualifications  requisite  for  both  these 
latter  offices  of  “elder”  and  “deacon”  are  strongly  em¬ 
phasized  by  pointing  out  the  grave  responsibility  of  the 
Christian  Church  as  the  appointed  guardian  of  the  sacred 
deposit  of  revealed  truth. 

Thus  in  the  Pastoral  Epistles  the  maintenance  of  sound 
doctrine  is  ever  regarded  as  the  chief  purpose  of  Church 
government.  This  doctrine  appears  to  have  been  endan¬ 
gered  by  prevalent  forms  of  false  teaching.  The  exact 
character  of  these  heresies  cannot  be  determined.  Evi¬ 
dently  they  were  Jewish  in  their  origin,  and  consisted 
largely  in  vain  speculations  upon  Old  Testament  law  and 
history,  in  fruitless  discussions  of  casuistry,  and  in  Hebrew 
myths  and  rabbinical  legends. 

Many  readers  believe  that  these  false  teachings  included 
certain  elements  of  Oriental  philosophy  and  mysticism 
which  developed  into  the  Gnostic  theories  of  the  second 
century.  These  theories  taught  that  matter  is  essentially 
evil;  therefore,  the  world  could  not  have  been  created  by 
God  but  was  brought  into  being  by  one  in  a  long  series  of 


12 


INTRODUCTION 


spirits  or  aeons  which  emanated  from  him ;  a  place  among 
these  emanations  was  assigned  to  Christ,  and  a  reference 
to  the  series  is  supposed  to  be  found  in  “the  endless  gene¬ 
alogies”  of  which  Paul  speaks  in  these  Epistles.  These 
theories  taught  further  that  as  matter  was  evil,  there  was 
no  wrong  in  either  the  abuse  or  the  indulgence  of  the  body. 

Now  it  is  true  that  the  errors  which  Timothy  and  . Titus 
were  to  combat  do  include  both  false  asceticism  and  law¬ 
lessness  ;  it  is  further  true  that  they  may  have  had  heathen 
elements;  yet  their  essential  nature  seems  to  have  been 
largely  that  of  allegorical  interpretations  of  the  Old  Testa¬ 
ment  Scriptures  and  speculation  upon  the  requirements 
of  Jewish  law. 

Beyond  all  question  the  real  peril  in  these  teachings  lay 
in  their  lack  of  any  practical  moral  purpose  and  in  their 
definite  tendency  to  result  either  in  bodily  austerity  or  in 
license.  Such  teachings  Timothy  and  Titus  were  to  oppose 
by  sound  doctrine  which  would  secure  sane  and  holy  living. 

The  supreme  interest  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles,  there¬ 
fore,  is  moral,  ethical,  practical.  Their  great  purpose  is  to 
produce  purity,  godliness,  holiness,  service,  love.  The  er¬ 
rors  they  combat  recur  in  every  age.  There  is  always  dan¬ 
ger  that  religion  may  degenerate  into  mere  idle  speculation, 
into  the  vapors  of  theological  and  philosophical  debate,  or 
on  the  other  hand,  into  a  set  of  external,  arbitrary  rules  and 
laws  of  conduct. 

Real  religion  is  a  matter  of  motive,  of  conviction,  of  de¬ 
termination,  and  of  belief,  and  it  cannot  fail  to  express  it¬ 
self  in  kindly  words  and  in  worthy  deeds.  An  intelligent 
acceptance  of  the  great  Christian  verities  will  inevitably 
transform  character  and  mold  conduct.  True  faith  in  a 
living  Christ  will  surely  issue  in  a  life  of  worship  and  serv¬ 
ice  and  love. 

Herein,  then,  is  the  abiding  value  of  the  Pastoral  Epis¬ 
tles,  namely,  in  their  insistence  upon  consistent  Christian 
living,  in  their  inspiration  to  holiness,  in  their  guidance 
toward  God. 

It  is  true  that  they  possess  unique  interest  for  all  who  are 
concerned  in  the  vexed  problems  of  church  organization. 


INTRODUCTION 


13 


Aside  from  the  teaching  of  these  little  letters,  those  prob¬ 
lems  can  never  be  solved.  They  are  the  inspired  manual 
for  the  order  of  the  Christian  Church. 

It  is  also  true  that  it  is  easy  to  underrate  their  impor¬ 
tance  in  matters  of  Christian  faith.  They  contain  great 
classic  passages  which  like  precious  gems  flash  forth  the 
radiance  of  revealed  truth. 

However,  their  supreme  glory  lies  in  the  fact  that  they 
continually  remind  us  that  truth  is  in  order  to  godliness, 
that  “the  grace  of  God  hath  appeared  bringing  salvation 
to  all  men,  instructing  us,  to  the  intent  that,  denying  un¬ 
godliness  and  worldly  lusts,  we  should  live  soberly  and 
righteously  and  godly  in  this  present  world ;  looking  for  the 
blessed  hope  and  appearing  of  the  glory  of  the  great  God 
and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ;  who  gave  himself  for  us,  that 
he  might  redeem  us  from  all  iniquity,  and  purify  unto  him¬ 
self  a  people  for  his  own  possession,  zealous  of  good  works.” 


THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO 
TIMOTHY 

It  is  distinction  and  honor  enough  for  Timothy  that  he 
enjoyed  the  friendship  and  won  the  affection  of  the  Apostle 
Paul.  The  character  of  the  great  apostle  rises  above  the 
mists  of  the  receding  centuries  in  ever-increasing  glory  and 
grandeur,  and  only  a  man  of  unusual  qualities  would  have 
been  granted  the  privilege  of  being  his  chosen  companion 
and  the  recipient  of  his  love. 

The  acquaintance  between  them  was  formed  when  Paul, 
on  his  first  missionary  journey,  visited  Lystra  where  Tim¬ 
othy  was  living.  This  city  lay  on  the  great  Roman  road 
between  Antioch  and  Derbe  in  what  is  now  known  as 
southern  Asia  Minor.  It  was  a  Roman  colony.  The  exact 
race  to  which  its  population  belonged  is  not  definitely 
known.  The  father  of  Timothy,  however,  is  called  “a 
Greek,”  and  it  is  therefore  probable  that  Timothy  enjoyed 
the  culture  which  this  term  implies.  What  is  more  certain 
and  more  important,  he  was  brought  up  under  strong  re¬ 
ligious  influences;  his  mother,  Eunice,  like  his  grandmother 
Lois,  was  a  devout  Jewess,  and  Timothy  from  his  earliest 
years  was  instructed  carefully  in  the  Holy  Scriptures. 

It  was  during  the  impressionable  days  of  Timothy’s  boy¬ 
hood  that  Paul  made  that  memorable  visit  to  Lystra  when 
the  populace  first  wished  to  worship  the  apostle  and  later 
sought  to  take  his  life.  Timothy  seems  to  have  listened 
with  eagerness  to  the  good  news  preached  by  Paul.  He  saw 
him  heal  a  helpless  cripple,  heard  him  appeal  to  the  great 
crowds,  looked  on  in  horror  when  he  was  stoned  and  left  as 
dead,  and  in  wonder  when  he  rose  and  reentered  the  city. 
The  next  day  the  apostle  started  on  his  journey ;  and  in  the 
company  of  earnest  converts  whom  he  left  behind  him  in 
Lystra  were  Eunice  and  her  son  Timothy. 

On  his  second  missionary  journey  Paul  revisited  Lystra 
and  chose  Timothy  as  a  companion  in  travel.  This  choice 
was  determined  in  part  by  the  high  esteem  in  which  the 

15 


16  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO  TIMOTHY 


young  disciple  was  held  by  the  Christians  both  of  Lystra 
and  of  Iconium,  and  further  by  certain  prophetic  utter¬ 
ances  which  intimated  the  fitness  of  Timothy  for  his  task. 
Accordingly,  to  avoid  the  prejudice  of  Jews  among  whom 
he  might  labor,  Timothy  submitted  to  the  rite  of  circum¬ 
cision,  and  then  was  ordained  by  the  presbytery,  or  local 
council  of  elders,  and  in  this  solemn  service  Paul  himself 
took  part.  Henceforth,  until  the  death  of  the  apostle,  Tim¬ 
othy  was  his  associate,  his  helper,  his  loyal  friend. 

Together  they  crossed  from  Asia  to  Europe,  carrying  the 
gospel  message.  Together  they  visited  Philippi  and  Thes- 
salonica  and  Berea.  For  a  time  Timothy  was  left  behind, 
but  he  rejoined  Paul  at  Athens,  from  which  city  he  carried 
back  a  message  to  the  Thessalonians  and  again  met  Paul  at 
Corinth.  Subsequently  they  traveled  eastward  together 
to  complete  the  missionary  journey  at  Jerusalem  and 
Antioch. 

Again  on  his  third  great  evangelistic  tour  Paul  was  ac¬ 
companied  by  Timothy  and  with  him  spent  more  than  two 
years  in  Ephesus.  During  this  time  Timothy  was  sent  on 
a  difficult  mission  to  Corinth.  Later,  on  his  return,  he 
visited  Greece  with  Paul  and  was  one  of  the  company  who 
went  with  him  on  his  last  journey  to  Jerusalem,  where  the 
apostle  was  arrested. 

During  the  years  of  imprisonment  Timothy  was  found 
with  Paul  in  Rome,  and  after  the  release  of  the  apostle  he 
journeyed  with  him  to  Asia  and  was  left  in  charge  of  the 
church  at  Ephesus.  Not  long  after,  he  received  from  Paul 
this  First  Epistle,  which  was  designed  to  guide  and  assist 
him  in  his  work.  Some  time  later  he  received  the  Second 
Epistle,  the  content  of  which  shows  that  Paul  had  been 
imprisoned  again,  that  he  was  soon  to  be  executed,  and  that 
he  longed  for  the  companionship  and  comfort  of  the  young 
friend  whom  in  this  his  last  letter  he  summoned  to  his  side. 

That  mission  to  the  Ephesian  church  was  the  most  dif¬ 
ficult  task  to  which  Timothy  ever  had  been  appointed. 
The  city  was  one  of  the  most  important  capitals  of  the 
ancient  world ;  through  it  surged  great  tides  of  travel  and 
of  commerce;  in  it  were  found  influential  representatives 
of  alLthe  schools  of  Greek  and  Oriental  philosophy,  as  well 


THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO  TIMOTHY  17 


as  all  forms  of  pagan  religion.  In  particular,  it  was  the  seat 
of  worship  of  the  great  goddess  Diana  whose  temple,  just 
outside  the  city,  attracted  vast  multitudes  of  pilgrims,  and 
brought  to  the  city  both  fame  and  wealth.  In  addition  to 
these  heathen  influences,  the  Ephesian  Christians  were  sub¬ 
jected  to  strong  currents  of  Jewish  thought  and  teaching. 

That  Timothy,  after  long  years  of  acquaintance  with 
Paul,  was  accounted  capable  of  filling  such  a  difficult  post, 
is  an  eloquent  testimony  to  his  ability  and  his  worth.  It  is 
evident  that  Timothy  was  timid  and  retiring,  but  this  dis¬ 
position  was  due  in  large  measure  to  his  youth  and  to  his 
lack  of  physical  strength.  It  is  a  mistake  to  argue  from  the 
serious  exhortations  found  in  Paul’s  Epistles  that  Timothy 
was  lacking  in  vigor,  in  moral  courage,  or  in  spiritual  power. 
The  deep  affection  felt  for  him  by  the  apostle  and  expressed 
repeatedly  in  these  letters  must  argue  for  a  character  of 
peculiar  beauty  and  depth  and  charm. 

Nevertheless,  the  work  to  which  Timothy  had  been  as¬ 
signed  was  full  of  serious  problems,  and  while  Paul  did  not 
hesitate  to  entrust  him  with  the  task,  he  did  feel  it  wise  to 
write  to  him  this  letter  of  instruction  which  not  only  served 
for  the  guidance  of  Timothy  but  has  also  been  a  handbook 
for  Christian  pastors  in  all  succeeding  years.  It  was  neces¬ 
sary  for  Timothy  to  rebuke  false  teachers,  to  direct  the 
public  worship,  to  aid  in  the  choice  of  church  officers,  to 
deal  wisely  with  many  different  classes  in  the  Christian 
community,  and  to  lead  a  life  which  would  be  an  example 
and  an  inspiration  to  all  the  flock. 

The  letter  contains,  first,  directions  intended  for  the  en¬ 
tire  church,  and  then  such  as  applied  more  directly  to  Tim¬ 
othy  himself.  These  injunctions  are  full  of  meaning  and 
of  easy  application  to  pastors  and  people  of  the  present  day. 
The  letter  is  so  far  informal  as  to  admit  no  very  exact  anal¬ 
ysis.  It  is  possible,  however,  that  the  following  outline  may 
be  of  service  to  readers  as  indicating  the  general  contents 
of  the  epistle: 

1.  Introductory.  I  Tim.  1:  1-20. 

A.  The  Salutation.  Ch.  1:  1,  2. 

B.  The  Charge  Concerning  Doctrine.  Ch.  1:3-20. 

1.  The  Law  and  the  Gospel.  Ch.  1:3-11. 


18  THE  FIRST  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO  TIMOTHY 


2.  The  Thanksgiving  of  Paul.  Ch.  1:  12-17. 

3.  The  Encouragement  and  Warning.  Ch.  1 : 18-20. 

II.  General  Instruction  for  the  Church.  Chs.  2:  1  to  3:  16. 

A.  Public  Worship.  Ch.  2. 

1.  The  Scope  of  Public  Prayer.  Ch.  2:  1-7. 

2.  The  Demeanor  of  Men  and  Women.  Ch.  2:  8-15. 

B.  The  Qualifications  of  Officers.  Ch.  3. 

1.  Bishops.  Ch.  3:  1-7. 

2.  Deacons.  Ch.  3;  8-13. 

3.  The  Importance  of  the  Church.  Ch.  3:  14-16. 

III.  Advice  to  Timothy.  Chs.  4:  1  to  6:  2 

A.  Personal  Life  and  Duties.  Ch.  4. 

1.  Warning  Against  False  Doctrine.  Ch.  4;  1-5. 

2.  Exhortation  to  Godly  Living.  Ch.  4:  6-10. 

3.  Encouragement  to  Faithful  Service.  Ch.  4:  11-16. 

B.  Pastoral  Oversight.  Chs.  5:  1  to  6:  2. 

1.  The  Old  and  the  Young.  Ch.  5:  1,  2 

2.  Widows.  Ch.  5:3-16. 

3.  Elders.  Ch.  5:  17-25 

4.  Slaves.  Ch.  6:  1,  2. 

IV.  Conclusion.  Ch.  6:  3-21. 

A.  False  Teachers  Denounced  for  Vanity  and  Avarice. 

Ch.  6:  3-10. 

B.  Timothy  Solemnly  Exhorted.  Ch.  6:  11-16. 

C.  Postscript.  Ch.  6:  17-21. 

1.  An  Admonition  to  the  Rich.  Ch.  6:  17-19. 

2.  Final  Charge  to  Timothy.  Ch.  6:  20,  21a. 

3.  Benediction.  Ch.  6:  21b. 


I  Tim.  1:1,2 


THE  SALUTATION 


19 


I.  Introductory  I  Timothy  1:  1-20 

A.  THE  SALUTATION  Ch.  1:  1,  2 

1  Paul,  an  apostle  of  Christ  Jesus  according  to  the  com¬ 
mandment  of  God  our  Saviour,  and  Christ  Jesus  our  hope; 
2  unto  Timothy,  my  true  child  in  faith:  Grace,  mercy,  peace, 
from  God  the  Father  and  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord. 

The  first  question  which  seriously  concerns  a  Christian 
pastor  is  that  of  his  call  to  the  sacred  office.  Mistaken 
notions  of  this  call  are  responsible  for  keeping  many  worthy 
men  out  of  the  ministry,  as  well  as  for  alluring  some  to  at¬ 
tempt  its  tasks  who  are  unqualified  and  who  could  serve 
God  more  effectively  in  other  spheres. 

This  call  consists  in  a  conviction  wrought  in  the  heart  of 
a  man  by  the  Spirit  of  God  that  it  is  his  duty  and  privilege 
to  devote  himself  to  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  and  to  the 
care  of  souls.  This  conviction  is  usually  produced  by 
natural  means  and  can  be  vindicated  on  reasonable 
grounds.  In  its  essence  it  does  not  differ  from  the  expe¬ 
rience  of  any  follower  of  Christ  who,  however  humble  and 
obscure  his  task,  if  wholly  submissive  to  the  will  of  his 
Master,  may  have  the  comfort  and  peace  of  believing  that 
he  is  in  the  place  appointed  him  by  the  Lord. 

Paul  had  no  doubt  as  to  his  call.  He  believed  that  it 
came  to  him  directly  from  God;  it  had  been  voiced  by 
Ananias  in  the  hour  of  his  conversion;  it  had  been  con¬ 
firmed  by  the  church  at  Antioch  when  he  was  ordained  to 
his  life  work;  and  now  on  his  last  missionary  journey  as  he 
writes  to  Timothy,  he  declares  himself  to  be  “an  apostle 
of  Christ  Jesus”  in  obedience  to  “the  commandment  of 
God.” 

The  very  word  “apostle”  used  by  Paul  to  describe  his 
office  embodies  the  idea  of  divine  vocation,  for  it  means 
“one  who  has  been  sent.”  It  applies  specifically  to  that 
little  group  of  men  who  were  appointed  by  Christ  in  person 
and  who  were  given  supernatural  endowments  as  witnesses 
of  his  resurrection  and  as  the  founders  of  his  Church. 


20 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  1 :1,  2 


This  term  thus  used  by  Paul  in  the  opening  sentences 
of  the  epistle  sounds  out  a  note  of  authority,  and  intimates 
that  he  is  writing  not  a  merely  personal  letter,  but  is  sending 
a  message  to  the  pastor  and  through  him  to  the  members 
of  the  Ephesian  church.  Thus  it  became  of  priceless  value 
for  the  guidance  not  only  of  that  congregation,  but  for 
every  church  of  Christ  through  the  following  years. 

Paul  calls  himself  ‘‘an  apostle  of  Christ  Jesus,”  not  of 
‘‘Jesus  Christ.”  This  is  according  to  his  usual  custom. 
While  both  phrases  denote  the  same  Lord,  the  former  fixes 
the  thought  upon  the  glorified  divine  Being  who  had  been 
known  among  men  as  ‘‘Jesus”;  the  latter  makes  more 
prominent  the  human  aspect  of  the  One  who  had  become 
‘‘the  Christ.”  This  was  natural  for  Paul  who  had  not 
companied  with  the  Master  in  the  days  of  his  flesh,  who 
after  his  conversion  always  regarded  Christ  as  his  ascended 
and  glorified  Lord. 

As  Paul  speaks  of  his  divine  call,  he  employs  two  phrases 
not  found  previously  in  his  epistles.  He  describes  God  as 
‘‘our  Saviour,”  and  Jesus  Christ  as  ‘‘our  hope.”  These  are 
beautiful  expressions:  one  pointing  backward  to  a  great 
redeeming  work ;  one  looking  forward  to  the  fulfillment  of 
glorious  promises.  In  the  Old  Testament,  God  is  repre¬ 
sented  as  a  ‘‘Saviour,”  but  the  salvation  secured  by  him  is 
usually  that  of  deliverance  from  physical  peril ;  but  here  the 
fuller  meaning  is  intended,  as  one  who  has  set  us  free  from 
the  guilt  and  power  of  sin.  Christ  is  called  elsewhere  ‘‘our 
peace”  and  ‘‘our  life;”  here  he  is  represented  as  the  ground 
and  object  of  that  confident  expectation  of  glory  which  is 
to  be  ours  when  finally  we  are  delivered  from  the  very 
presence  of  sin  and  of  all  its  consequences,  when  Christ 
himself  again  shall  appear. 

While  Paul  describes  himself  here  with  this  note  of  au-  - 
thority,  as  he  turns  to  address  Timothy,  he  employs  a  tone 
of  true  tenderness:  ‘‘Unto  Timothy,  my  true  child  in 
faith.”  He  thus  refers  to  the  fact  that  years  ago,  when  he 
was  on  his  First  Missionary  Journey,  his  preaching  had  re¬ 
sulted  in  the  rebirth]  of  Timothy,  so  that  the  latter  was  in 
reality  his  spiritual  child,  and  to  the  further  facts  that  on 


I  Tim.  1:1,  2 


THE  SALUTATION 


21 


his  Second  Missionary  Journey  Timothy  had  become  his 
companion  and  during  all  the  long  years  had  rendered  serv¬ 
ice  to  him  'Tike  a  son  to  a  father;”  and  now,  as  fora  time 
they  have  been  separated  from  each  other,  Paul  sends  this 
tender  greeting  to  one  he  truly  loves. 

Upon  Timothy  he  invokes  “grace,  mercy,  peace.”  There 
is  something  peculiar  in  this  petition.  In  all  previous  let¬ 
ters  his  salutations  have  included  “grace  and  peace”; 
never  before  has  Paul  added  the  word  “mercy.”  “Grace” 
denotes  the  divine  favor  in  its  fullest  form ;  it  is  the  source 
of  all  spiritual  life  and  enjoyment.  “Peace”  is  the  experi¬ 
ence  of  a  soul  in  harmony  with  God,  which  knows  that 
tranquillity  and  blessedness  God  alone  can  give.  “  Mercy,” 
however,  turns  the  thoughts  specially  upon  the  ill  desert 
of  the  recipient  and  upon  the  compassion  of  God.  It  is  just 
possible  that  it  was  used  by  the  apostle  as  a  delicate  sug¬ 
gestion  to  the  young  pastor  of  his  continual  need  of  hu¬ 
mility. 

Surely  it  is  a  message  to  all  modern  ministers.  It  reminds 
them  that  while  God  will  grant  all  needed  grace  and  while 
they  can  expect  to  enjoy  a  peace  which  passes  all  under¬ 
standing,  still  in  their  most  sacred  offices  they  will  fall  so 
far  short  of  perfection  and  of  the  requirements  of  their 
spiritual  tasks  that  they  continually  will  need  to  cast 
themselves  upon  the  mercy  of  God. 

The  close  relation  in  which  Paul  here  unites  Christ  Jesus 
with  “God  the  Father”  as  the  source  of  these  blessings,  as 
well  as  the  previous  phrases  in  this  salutation,  where 
“Christ  Jesus  our  hope”  is  united  with  “God  our  Sav¬ 
iour”  in  the  appointment  of  Paul  to  his  service,  indicates 
almost  beyond  question  that,  to  the  mind  of  the  apostle, 
Christ  Jesus  is  no  less  than  divine. 

This  divine  Saviour  he  calls  “our  Lord.”  Only  those 
who  really  submit  their  wills  to  Christ  as  Master  and  Lord 
will  know  what  it  is  to  find  in  him  their  “hope”  and  to  re¬ 
ceive  from  him  “grace,  mercy,  peace.” 


22 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  1:3-11 


B.  THE  CHARGE  CONCERNING  DOCTRINE,  Ch.  1:  3-11. 

1.  The  Law  and  the  Gospel.  Ch.  1:  3-11 

3  As  I  exhorted  thee  to  tarry  at  Ephesus,  when  I  was  going 
into  Macedonia,  that  thou  mightest  charge  certain  men  not  to 
teach  a  different  doctrine,  4  neither  to  give  heed  to  fables 
and  endless  genealogies,  which  minister  questionings, 
rather  than  a  dispensation  of  God  which  is  in  faith ;  so  do  I 
now.  5  But  the  end  of  the  charge  is  love  out  of  a  pure  heart 
and  a  good  conscience  and  faith  unfeigned:  6  from  which 
things  some  having  swerved  have  turned  aside  unto  vain 
talking;  7  desiring  to  be  teachers  of  the  law,  though  they 
understand  neither  what  they  say,  nor  whereof  they  con¬ 
fidently  aflarm.  8  But  we  know  that  the  law  is  good,  if  a  man 
use  it  lawfully,  9  as  knowing  this,  that  law  is  not  made  for  a 
righteous  man,  but  for  the  lawless  and  unruly,  for  the  un¬ 
godly  and  sinners,  for  the  unholy  and  profane,  for  murderers 
of  fathers  and  murderers  of  mothers,  for  manslayers,  10  for 
fornicators,  for  abusers  of  themselves  with  men,  for  men- 
stealers,  for  liars,  for  false  swearers,  and  if  there  be  any 
other  thing  contrary  to  the  sound  doctrine ;  1 1  according  to 
the  gospel  of  the  glory  of  the  blessed  God,  which  was  com¬ 
mitted  to  my  trust. 

The  second  great  question  which  concerns  a  minister  of 
Christ  is  that  of  the  message  he  is  to  proclaim.  Exhortations 
to  sound  doctrine  constitute  the  main  burden  of  all  the 
Pastoral  Letters  taken  as  a  whole,  and  the  introductory 
chapter  of  this  First  Epistle  to  Timothy  has  this  as  its 
chief  theme. 

In  its  form,  however,  this  chapter  is  a  reminder  to  Tim¬ 
othy  of  the  charge  given  to  him  by  the  apostle  when  the 
church  at  Ephesus  was  entrusted  to  his  pastoral  care.  This 
charge  was  to  proclaim  the  pure  gospel,  vs.  3-11,  as  Paul 
himself  rejoiced  to  do,  vs.  12-17,  and  to  which  service  Tim¬ 
othy  had  been  ordained,  vs.  18-20. 

To  the  mind  of  Paul  there  was  no  uncertainty  as  to  the 
content  of  the  Christian  message.  He  designates  it  here 
as  “the  gospel  of  the  glory  of  the  blessed  God,”  v.  11;  he 


I  Tim.  1:3-11  CONCERNING  DOCTRINE 


23 


summarizes  it  in  the  familiar  saying,  “Christ  Jesus  came 
into  the  world  to  save  sinners,”  v.  15.  He  declares  its  su¬ 
preme  end  to  be  “  love  ”  for  God  and  men.  V.  5. 

He  therefore  begins  the  letter  by  recalling  to  Timothy 
the  fact  that  he  had  been  left  in  Ephesus  for  the  very  pur¬ 
pose  of  restraining  certain  men  who  were  teaching  “a  dif¬ 
ferent  doctrine”  and  not  the  divine  message  delivered  by 
Paul.  This  new  teaching  was  described  as  heterodoxy, 
“another  teaching,”  that  is,  divergent  from  the  message  of 
the  apostle,  which  he  himself  considered  to  be  an  inspired 
standard  and  norm  of  truth. 

This  false  teaching,  however,  did  not  consist  so  much  in 
such  a  denial  of  essential  truths  as  we  commonly  designate 
“heresy,”  but  rather  in  an  attempt  to  add  to  the  gospel 
certain  fruitless  speculations  upon  the  Jewish  law,  which 
Paul  defines  as  mere  “fables”  and  “endless  genealogies.” 
By  these  terms  he  does  not  refer  to  the  stories  of  the  Old 
Testament,  but  to  the  rabbinical  subtleties  and  the  alle¬ 
gorical  interpretations  connected  with  the  Hebrew  Scrip¬ 
tures,  and  particularly  with  their  “pedigrees,”  which  re¬ 
sulted  only  in  controversy  and  not  in  what  Paul  describes 
as  the  discharge  of  a  stewardship  entrusted  by  God  in  the 
sphere  of  Christian  faith.  Paul  seems  to  intimate  that  re¬ 
ligious  teachers  to  whom  has  been  committed  the  divine 
message  should  make  available  to  others  those  blessings 
of  God  which  accompany  Christian  faith.  The  true  pur¬ 
pose  of  such  teachers  should  be  to  secure,  not  the  dissension 
and  bitterness  which  issue  from  the  fruitless  discussion  of 
subtle  mysteries,  but  rather  “love  out  of  a  pure  heart  and 
a  good  conscience  and  faith  unfeigned.” 

Paul  reminds  Timothy  that  certain  leaders  in  the  Ephe¬ 
sian  church  had  been  indifferent  to  these  moral  qualities,  y 
and  had  “turned  aside  unto  vain  talking,”  desiring  to  be 
known  as  “teachers  of  the  law,”  although,  indeed,  they 
understood  neither  the  force  of  their  own  assertions  nor  the 
real  nature  of  the  themes  they  debated.  Paul  does  not 
deny  that  the  law  is  admirable  when  used  in  accordance 
with  its  right  meaning  and  intention  ,  and  when  one  remem¬ 
bers  that  it  was  “not  made  for  a  righteous  man”  who  ful¬ 
fills  the  will  of  God  in  free  obedience,  but  that  it  was  in- 


24 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  1:3-11 


tended  to  rebuke  and  restrain  those  who  are  guilty  of  re¬ 
bellion  against  God  and  of  acts  contrary  to  his  Command¬ 
ments  and  to  that  wholesome  instruction  contained  in  the 
gospel. 

Evidently,  then,  Paul  does  not  regard  the  message  which 
a  Christian  minister  is  to  deliver  as  a  matter  of  human 
speculation,  but  rather  as  a  divine  revelation.  All  teaching, 
whether  in  reference  to  duty  or  doctrine,  must  be  according 
to  that  message  of  which  Paul  says  that,  as  asacred  treasure, 
it  “was  committed  to  my  trust.”  This  message  may  be 
stated  in  different  terms ;  it  must  be  given  ever  wider  ap¬ 
plications;  but  in  its  essence  it  cannot  be  changed.  It  is 
the  good  news  “of  the  glory  of  the  blessed  God,”  the  glad 
tidings  of  his  redeeming  grace  in  Christ  Jesus. 

Preaching  which  departs  from  this  gospel  is  either  un¬ 
sound  or  unprofitable;  sometimes  it  is  both.  Here  the  re¬ 
buke  is  directed  against  vain  and  futile  speculations,  and 
against  certain  refinements  and  interpretations  which  de¬ 
rived  from  Scripture  rules  of  living  to  be  accepted  in  place 
of  that  vital  principle  of  love,  which  is  in  itself  the  fulfilling 
of  all  law. 

Ministers  need  to  be  reminded  that  the  gospel  is  not  good 
advice,  but  good  news.  It  is  not  a  code  of  laws,  nor  is  it 
merely  a  system  of  ethics,  but  the  proclamation  of  the  re¬ 
deeming  work  of  God,  our  Saviour.  It  is  a  message  of  the 
infinite  grace  offered  in  Christ  who  is  “  our  hope.” 

There  is  surely  a  place  and  a  time  for  preaching  the  law. 
It  must  be  set  forth  not  as  a  matter  of  idle  debate,  nor  to 
arouse  curious  questions  of  casuistry,  but  in  all  its  solemn 
grandeur  as  a  rebuke  to  sinners  and  as  a  means  of  awaken¬ 
ing  in  human  hearts  the  conscious  need  of  salvation. 

However,  the  supreme  end  of  preaching  ever  will  be  so 
to  present  the  grace  of  God  in  Christ  as  to  call  forth  a  re¬ 
sponsive  love.  Yet  this  love  as  described  by  Paul  is  no 
mere  passing  emotion.  Paul  never  identifies  religion  with 
shallow  sentiment.  The  love  of  which  he  speaks  must  have 
its  source  and  its  spring  “  in  a  pure  heart,”  that  is,  one  free 
from  all  unholy  desires  and  evil  motives ;  it  must  come  from 
“a  good  conscience,”  that  is  one  which  has  been  delivered 
from  the  sense  of  guilt,  from  the  consciousness  of  weakness 


I  Tim.  1:12-17  CON'CERNING  DOCTRINE 


25 


and  from  all  unwillingness  to  respond  to  the  claims  of 
moral  obligation ;  above  all,  it  must  have  its  origin  in  “  faith 
unfeigned,”  a  faith  which  is  no  empty  profession,  no  simple, 
easy  assent  to  formulas,  but  a  vital  principle  uniting  one 
to  a  living  Christ,  and  manifested  in  a  life  ”  according  to  the 
gospel  of  the  glory  of  the  blessed  God.” 

2.  The  Thanksgiving  of  Paul.  Ch.  1 :  12-17 

12  I  thank  him  that  enabled  me,  even  Christ  Jesus  our 
Lord,  for  that  he  counted  me  faithful,  appointing  me  to  his 
service;  13  though  I  was  before  a  blasphemer,  and  a 
persecutor,  and  injurious:  howbeit  I  obtained  mercy,  because 
I  did  it  ignorantly  in  unbelief;  14  and  the  grace  of  our  Lord 
abounded  exceedingly  with  faith  and  love  which  is  in  Christ 
Jesus.  15  Faithful  is  the  saying,  and  worthy  of  all  accepta¬ 
tion,  that  Christ  Jesus  came  into  the  world  to  save  sinners; 
of  whom  I  am  chief:  16  howbeit  for  this  cause  I  obtained 
mercy,  that  in  me  as  chief  might  Jesus  Christ  show  forth  all 
his  longsuffering,  for  an  ensample  of  them  that  should  there¬ 
after  believe  on  him  unto  eternal  life.  17  Now  unto  the  King 
eternal,  immortal,  invisible,  the  only  God,  be  honor  and 
glory  for  ever  and  ever.  Amen. 

In  addition  to  the  conviction  of  a  divine  call  and  to  the 
possession  of  a  divine  message,  a  true  minister  of  Christ 
needs  a  personal  experience  of  divine  grace.  This  is  the 
most  necessary  of  all  his  qualifications.  No  man  ever  had 
that  experience  more  truly  or  more  deeply  than  did  Paul 
himself.  When  urging  Timothy  to  be  faithful  to  his  task, 
Paul  turns  aside  to  express  the  gratitude  which  he  himself 
feels  for  the  divine  grace  which  has  called  him  into  the  min¬ 
istry  and  equipped  him  for  his  work  in  spite  of  his  con¬ 
scious  unworthiness  and  the  grievousness  of  his  previous 
sin.  This  thanksgiving  is  not  wholly  a  digression.  It 
really  enforces  his  charge  to  Timothy,  for  Paul  so  voices 
his  gratitude  as  to  give  a  true  conception  of  the  gospel 
which  Timothy  has  been  charged  to  keep  pure;  and  as  Paul 
expresses  his  own  joy  in  being  privileged  to  proclaim  that 
gospel,  his  words  cannot  fail  to  encourage  the  young  pastor 
who  shares  with  him  that  privilege  which  is  so  unique. 

Paul  expresses  his  thanks  to  a  living  and  divine  Christ 
who  showed  such  infinite  grace  in  counting  him  faithful  and 


26 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  1:12-17 


in  appointing  him  to  public  service,  even  though  previously 
he  had  been  *‘a  blasphemer,  and  a  persecutor,  and  injuri¬ 
ous.”  Paul  does  not  mean  that  he  had  blasphemed  the 
name  of  God,  but  the  name  of  Christ,  whom  he  now  re¬ 
gards  as  a  divine  Master.  As  a  persecutor  he  had  been 
guilty  of  surpassing  cruelty;  he  had  been  “injurious,”  but 
he  here  describes  the  malice  and  the  deadly  hate  which  he 
had  shown  towards  the  followers  of  Christ.  There  had  been 
on  his  part  a  certain  demonic  fierceness.  He  had  been 
heartless  in  his  treatment  of  women  and  of  men.  He  had 
shut  them  in  prison.  He  had  compelled  them  to  blaspheme 
the  name  they  loved.  As  a  ruler  he  had  given  his  vote  to 
have  them  put  to  death  with  bitter  torture.  In  spite  of  all 
this,  Christ  had  shown  him  mercy.  Paul’s  ignorance  exten¬ 
uated  his  fault.  It  did  not  excuse  it,  for  his  unbelief  had  been 
stubborn  and  sinful.  Nevertheless  the  grace  of  the  Lord 
had  “abounded  exceedingly”  toward  Paul,  so  that  there 
was  awakened  an  answering  faith  and  love  toward  Christ. 
Thus  Paul  found  the  experience  which  he  calls  “salvation,” 
and  with  this  in  mind  he  quotes  a  notable  saying,  which 
seems  to  have  been  current  among  the  early  believers, 
namely,  “Christ  Jesus  came  into  the  world  to  save  sin¬ 
ners.”  Such  a  salvation  as  Paul  had  found  was  the  very 
purpose  and  end  of  the  incarnation,  and  the  “saying” 
which  Paul  uses  in  this  connection  forms  a  comprehensive 
and  noble  summary  of  Christian  truth.  The  connection  of 
the  phrases  is  significant.  Paul  is  returning  thanks  for  being 
entrusted  with  the  gospel.  In  effect  he  is  saying,  “This  is 
the  gospel.”  In  contrast  with  the  false  teachers  and  to  en¬ 
courage  Timothy  to  fidelity,  he  sounds  forth  this  mighty 
message:  “Christ  Jesus  came  into  the  world  to  save  sin¬ 
ners.” 

He  “came  into  the  world.”  This  phrase  speaks  to  us  ma¬ 
jestically  of  preexistence,  of  Deity,  of  incarnation,  of  vol-' 
untary  humility,  of  grace  and  mercy  and  love;  for  he  came 
into  the  world  for  the  sake  of  “sinners”  and  to  solve  for 
them  the  supreme  problem  of  the  world.  He  came  “to 
save  sinners.”  Therefore,  salvation  refers  chiefly  to  sin, 
and  sin  finds  its  essence  in  the  selfishness  of  the  human  soul. 
Christ  came  to  bring  salvation  from  the  guilt  and  power 


I  Tim.  1:18-20  CONCERNING  DOCTRINE 


27 


and  ultimately  from  the  presence  of  sin.  He  came  to  bring 
men  to  a  life  of  service  and  of  holiness  and  of  fellowship 
with  God. 

This  salvation  can  be  expressed,  as  Paul  further  declares, 
by  faith  and  love,  and  these  will  be  preceded  by  true  re¬ 
pentance;  for  Paul  immediately  refers  to  himself  as  the 
chief  of  sinners.  As  he  recalls  his  life  of  cruelty  and  hatred 
and  ignorant  unbelief,  he  regards  himself  as  truly  unworthy 
of  the  salvation  which  has  been  granted  to  him,  still  more 
of  the  high  service  to  which  he  has  been  called  as  a  minis¬ 
ter  of  Christ.  He  states,  however,  the  special  reason  which 
Christ  had  in  showing  him  such  abounding  grace.  Itjvvas 
that  Paul  might  serve  as  a  supreme  example  of  one  who  had 
been  saved  by  grace.  It  was  to  give  encouragement  to  all 
other  men  that,  in  view  of  the  “longsuffering”  of  Christ 
shown  toward  Paul,  they  might  expect  similar  mercy  to  be 
granted  to  them,  no  matter  how  grievous  their  sin.  Paul  de¬ 
clares  that  to  them,  if  only  they  believe,  will  be  granted 
“eternal  life,”  by  which  phrase  he  does  not  mean  to  indicate 
mere  continuance  of  existence,  but  a  kind  and  quality  of 
life,  a  life  of  moral  excellence  and  of  blessed  fellowship  with 
God  through  Jesus  Christ. 

No  wonder  that  Paul  breaks  out  in  a  doxology  of  praise, 
“  unto  the  King  eternal,  immortal,  invisible,  the  only  God.” 
To  him  he  ascribes  “honor  and  glory  for  ever  and  ever.” 

Probably  no  truer  preparation  can  come  to  a  minister  of 
Christ  than  that  of  realizing  his  own  absolute  unworthiness 
and  of  believing  that  it  is  the  infinite  mercy  of  his  Lord 
which  has  called  him  from  sin  to  holiness  and  from  the  ser¬ 
vice  of  self  to  the  ministry  of  the  gospel.  When  one  appre¬ 
ciates  this  infinite  grace,  he  knows  something  of  the  exul¬ 
tation  and  the  joy  voiced  by  the  apostle,  and  he  is  encour¬ 
aged,  as  Timothy  must  have  been  when  he  read  these 
words,  to  share  with  Paul  the  blessed  experience  of  pro¬ 
claiming  the  message  of  divine  grace. 

3.  The  Encouragement  and  Warning.  Ch.  1:  18-20 

18  This  charge  I  commit  unto  thee,  my  child  Timothy, 
according  to  the  prophecies  which  led  the  way  to  thee,  that 
by  them  thou  mayest  war  the  good  warfare;  19  holding  faith 


28 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  1:18-20 


and  a  good  conscience ;  which  some  having  thrust  from  them 
made  shipwreck  concerning  the  faith:  20  of  whom  is  Hy- 
menaeus  and  Alexander;  whom  I  delivered  unto  Satan,  that 
they  might  be  taught  not  to  blaspheme. 

Even  when  convinced  of  a  call  to  the  ministry,  instructed 
in  the  gospel  message,  and  conscious  of  a  personal  expe¬ 
rience  of  divine  grace,  one  is  not  justified  in  assuming  the 
sacred  duties  of  a  Christian  pastor  unless  he  has  received 
the  public  san£tion  of  the  Church.  Paul  ever  regarded  the 
organized  society  of  believers  as  a  divine  institution,  and 
he  defended  its  right  to  determine  who  could  be  enrolled 
as  its  members  and  who  could  serve  as  its  officers. 

Thus  when  further  enforcing  his  charge  to  Timothy  and 
urging  him  to  guard  the  purity  of  the  gospel,  he  reminds 
him  of  the  inspired  predictions  uttered  at  the  time  when 
Timothy  was  ordained  and  encourages  him  in  accord¬ 
ance  with  these  prophecies  to  “war  the  good  warfare” 
as  a  soldier  of  Christ,  “holding  faith  and  a  good  con¬ 
science.” 

Paul  seems  to  indicate  that  ordination,  as  received  by 
Timothy  at  the  hands  of  the  presbytery,  is  an  appointment 
to  office  in  recognition  of  appropriate  gifts.  Often  a 
Christian  minister  has  been  in  the  position  of  the  young 
pastor  in  charge  of  the  church  at  Ephesus.  In  times  of  dis¬ 
couragement,  in  the  face  of  crushing  obligations,  when 
fearful  of  failure  and  defeat,  he  has  recalled  the  scene  in 
which  he  was  set  apart  for  his  sacred  task  by  the  repre¬ 
sentatives  of  the  Church.  He  has  remembered  the  favor¬ 
able  testimonies  to  his  ability  and  promise  which  were  pre¬ 
sented  by  those  who  had  investigated  his  qualifications 
for  the  high  task  to  which  he  was  being  appointed,  and  his 
heart  has  been  strengthened.  Girded  about  as  with  armor 
by  those  predictions  of  usefulness  and  by  those  cherished 
expressions  of  confidence,  he  has  gone  forth  with  new  cour¬ 
age  to  serve  faithfully  as  a  good  soldier  of  Jesus  Christ. 

On  the  other  hand,  Timothy  is  warned  of  the  peril  which 
attends  false  teaching  and  is  assured  that  as  the  Church 
has  a  right  to  determine  what  men  it  may  properly  ordain, 
so,  too,  at  times  it  is  obliged  to  exclude  from  its  ministry  and 


I  Tim.  1:18-20  CONCERNING  DOCTRINE 


29 


even  from  its  membership  those  who  are  corrupting  its 
pure  doctrine. 

Paul  refers  to  Hymenaeus  and  Alexander.  The  latter  is 
difficult  to  identify;  but  Hymenaeus  is  probably  the  same 
person  who  is  mentioned  in  a  later  letter  as  one  who  was 
denying  a  bodily  resurrection,  on  the  ground,  probably, 
that  for  a  believer,  resurrection,  in  a  spiritual  sense,  has 
taken  place  already.  Whatever  the  exact  nature  of  their 
dangerous  doctrine,  Paul  traces  the  cause  of  their  defection 
from  the  faith  to  a  previous  lapse  in  morals.  They  had 
thrust  away  from  themselves  “a  good  conscience,”  and 
consequently  had  “made  shipwreck  concerning  the  faith.” 
It  is  pitifully  true,  that  to  those  who  are  guilty  of  moral 
weakness  and  failure,  things  divine  become  less  and  less 
real,  and  finally  when  one  is  blinded  by  sin,  he  no  longer 
sees  with  the  eyes  of  faith  the  realities  of  the  gospel. 

In  reference  to  these  offenders,  Paul  declares  that  they 
have  been  “delivered  unto  Satan,  that  they  might  be 
taught  not  to  blaspheme.”  It  is  probable  that  by  this  ex¬ 
pression  “delivered  unto  Satan,”  Paul  means  more  than 
excommunication.  It  surely  means  that;  but  it  is  also 
possible  that,  in  the  early  days  of  the  Church,  as  with  the 
imposition  of  apostolic  hands  miraculous  powers  were  con¬ 
ferred,  so  excommunication  from  the  Church  in  some  cases 
may  have  been  followed  by  bodily  suffering.  However, 
when  a  person  was  thus  “remanded  to  Satan  for  punish¬ 
ment,”  it  was  with  a  view  to  his  reformation  and  restora¬ 
tion  to  Christian  fellowship.  Paul  hopes  that  these  men 
will  learn  by  their  experience  not  to  desecrate  sacred  things, 
nor  to  use  their  influence  in  undermining  the  faith  of  be¬ 
lievers. 

These  solemn  words  both  of  encouragement  and  of  warn¬ 
ing  must  impress  upon  all  readers  the  sanctity  of  the 
Chrisdan  Church.  They  cannot  fail  to  remind  us  of  the 
solemn  responsibilities  which  rest  upon  its  ordained  offi¬ 
cers,  and  also  of  the  holy  privileges  which  result  from  its 
fellowship  and  its  communion,  and  of  the  duty  which  rests 
upon  all  to  maintain  its  ordinances  and  to  guard  carefully 
its  sacred  deposit  of  revealed  truth. 


30 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  2:1-7 


II.  General  Instruction  for  the  Church.  Chs.  2:1 

TO  3:  16 

A.  PUBLIC  WORSHIP.  Ch.  2 

1.  The  Scope  of  Public  Prayer.  Ch,  2:  1-7 

I  exhort  therefore,  first  of  all,  that  supplications,  prayers,  in¬ 
tercessions,  thanksgivings,  be  made  for  all  men;  2  for  kings 
and  all  that  are  in  high  place  ;  that  we  may  lead  a  tranquil  and 
quiet  life  in  all  godliness  and  gravity.  3  This  is  good  and  ac¬ 
ceptable  in  the  sight  of  God  our  Saviour;  4  who  would  have  all 
men  to  be  saved,  and  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth.  5  For 
there  is  one  God,  one  mediator  also  between  God  and  men, 
himself  man,  Christ  Jesus,  6  who  gave  himself  a  ransom  for 
all;  the  testimony  to  be  borne  in  its  own  times;  7  whereimto  I 
was  appointed  a  preacher  and  an  apostle  (I  speak  the  truth,  I 
lie  not),  a  teacher  of  the  Gentiles  in  faith  and  truth. 

When  one  has  been  called  to  the  ministry,  when  he  has 
been  instructed  in  Christian  truth,  when  he  has  had  an  ex¬ 
perience  of  divine  grace,  and  when,  finally,  he  has  been  or¬ 
dained  by  the  action  of  the  Church,  the  first  great  task 
which  confronts  him  is  that  of  conducting  public  worship. 
It  is  a  supremely  difficult  task.  It  demands  tact  and  wis¬ 
dom  and  discipline,  and  it  taxes  all  the  powers  of  the  mind 
and  heart.  Upon  its  rightful  discharge  depends  in  large 
measure  the  spiritual  life  and  development  of  Christian 
congregations  and  the  value  of  their  appointed  services. 

Thus  after  his  introductory  chapter,  when  Paul  comes  to 
the  very  substance  of  his  letter  and  gives  to  the  young  pas¬ 
tor  instructions  intended  for  the  guidance  of  the  whole 
church,  he  first  lays  stress  upon  the  conduct  of  public  wor¬ 
ship.  In  tfie  days  of  the  apostles  this  worship  was  very 
simple  in  character,  yet  it  was  composed  of  those  elements 
which  are  essential  in  most  church  services  to-day,  namely, 
prayer  and  praise  and  preaching.  Paul  insists  that  the 
scope  of  this  prayer  and  thanksgiving  should  be  universal, 
and  that  the  task  of  public  preaching  should  be  entrusted 
not  to  women  but  to  men. 


I  Tim.  2:1-7 


PUBLIC  WORSHIP 


31 


“  I  exhort  therefore,  first  of  all,  that  supplications, 
prayers,  intercessions,  thanksgivings,  be  made  for  all  men.” 
It  is  possible  to  trace  shades  of  distinction  between  ‘^sup¬ 
plications,”  “prayers,”  and  “intercessions”;  but  Paul  is  not 
so  much  concerned  with  these  as  with  impressing  the  fact 
that  this  prayer  and  praise  should  have  in  view  all  classes 
and  conditions  of  men.  There  is  always  danger  that  pub¬ 
lic  intercession  and  thanksgiving  may  voice  the  desires  and 
aspirations  of  only  fractions  of  worshiping  congregations, 
or  may  confine  the  sympathy  and  thought  of  these  wor¬ 
shipers  to  narrow  and  bounded  horizons. 

For  one  class  in  particular  prayer  is  urged:  “for  kings 
and  all  that  are  in  high  place.”  Paul  might  have  gone  on 
to  specify  other  classes,  but  he  not  unnaturally  gives  as  ex¬ 
amples  of  proper  objects  for  universal  prayer  those  men 
upon  whom  rest  the  greatest  obligations  and  those  who 
possess  the  widest  power  for  evil  and  for  good.  It  is  the 
more  significant  that  these  com.mands  were  written  in  the 
days  when  Nero  was  emperor.  If  Paul  commanded  Chris¬ 
tians  to  pray  for  such  a  “king,”  surely  no  man  is  to  be  re¬ 
garded  as  beyond  the  realm  in  which  Christian  interces¬ 
sors  must  feel  a  sympathy  and  concern. 

Nor  are  we  to  forget  that  these  prayers  are  to  be  united 
with  “thanksgivings.”  These,  in  public  worship,  are  most 
commonly  expressed  in  the  form  of  hymns,  and  it  is  evi¬ 
dent  from  history  that  the  singing  of  such  hymns  formed 
an  element  in  public  worship  from  the  earliest  days  of  the 
Church.  Our  hymns  well  may  be  prayers  in  their  sub¬ 
stance,  and  our  prayers  properly  may  be  voiced  in  the  form 
of  hymns. 

The  reason  which  Paul  assigns  for  such  universal  prayer 
and  praTse^ay  appear  to  savor  somewhat  of  selfishness, 
“that  we  may  lead  a  tranquil  and  quiet  life  in  all  godliness 
and  gravity.”  However,  Paul  does  not  mean  that  this  is 
the  only  end  which  such  prayers  have  in  view.  There  are 
many  other  results  which  follow;  and  in  any  case,  it  is 
right  for  us  to  desire  such  tranquillity  and  peace  as  may 
worthily  express,  in  life  and  conduct,  our  Christian  faith, 
such  tranquillity  and  peace  as  are  only  possible  when  pub¬ 
lic  order  is  being  properly  preserved. 


32 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  2:1-7 


While  these  desirable  results  may  be  expected  by  Chris¬ 
tians,  yet  the  whole  exhortation  indicates  that  prayer  on 
their  part  is  to  be  unselfish.  It  is  never  to  be  limited  to  per¬ 
sonal  interests;  it  reaches  out  in  its  sympathies  toward  the 
whole  human  race. 

Of  such  universal  scope  in  prayer  Paul  declares,  “This 
is  good  and  acceptable  in  the  sight  of  God  our  Saviour;’’ 
for  hi^love  and  sympathy  are  boundless.  He  “would  have 
all  men  to  be  saved,  and  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the 
truth.’’  All  are  included  in  his  love.  He  is  the  Saviour  of 
all,  even  though  his  salvation  can  be  experienced  only  by 
those  who  accept  his  gracious  provision.  Salvation  is  not 
limited  by  his  willingness,  but  by  the  reluctance  and  un¬ 
belief  of  men.  This  salvation  is  inseparable  from  faith,  and 
therefore  from  “knowledge,”  as  Paul  indicates  that  “to 
be  saved”  involves  coming  “to  the  knowledge  of  the 
truth.” 

Paul  further  demonstrates  that  all  men  come  within  the 
saving  purpose  of  God,  and  therefore  should  be  remem¬ 
bered  in  prayer  by  the  people  of  God,  as  he  makes  the  great 
affirmation  that  “there  is  one  God.”  The  unity  of  the  di¬ 
vine  Being  indicates  that  God  stands  in  the  same  relation 
to  all  his  creatures  and  that  all  mankind  must  be  embraced 
alike  in  his  mercy  and  his  love. 

This  same  truth  is  still  further  established  by  a  refer¬ 
ence  to  the  incarnation,  as  Paul  states  that  there  is  “one 
mediator  also  between  God  and  men.”  There  is  no  place, 
then,  for  the  mediation  of  saints  or  of  angels.  Jesus  Christ  is 
the  one  and  only  Being  through  whom  we  have  access  to 
God.  He  truly  represents  God  to  man  and  man  to  God;  and 
as  there  is  only  one  such  Being,  and  as  he  is  “himself  man” 
while  at  the  same  time  God,  the  way  to  God  must  be  open 
to  all  men  alike. 

A  third  proof  that  God  would  have  all  to  be  saved,  and 
therefore  that  prayers  are  to  be  made  for  all,  is  found  in  the 
universal  purpose  of  the  atonement  of  Christ,  “who  gave 
himself  a  ransom  for  all.”  This  voluntary  giving  of  him¬ 
self  in  life,  and  particularly  in  his  atoning  death,  provided 
for  all  a  way  of  deliverance  from  the  guilt  and  power  of  sin ; 
and  inasmuch  as  this  redeeming  act  was  in  place  of  all  and 


I  Tim.  2:8-15 


PUBLIC  WORSHIP 


33 


in  behalf  of  all,  therefore  salvation  must  have  been  divinely 
intended  for  all. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  Church  to  proclaim  to  all  this  uni¬ 
versal  salvation  and  to  further  this  work  by  continual  pe¬ 
tition,  Now  that  redemption  has  been  accomplished,  and, 
until  all  have  heard  its  message,  these  are  the  “times”  for 
this  “testimony  to  be  borne.” 

The  ministry  of  Paul  is  a  final  argument  for  the  univer¬ 
sality  of  this  salvation,  for  he  has  been  sent  to  aid  in  this 
universal  proclamation  which  was  enjoined  upon  the 
Church.  His  ministry  is  not  self-chosen.  He  has  been  ap¬ 
pointed  by  God  as  a  herald  of  the  gospel ;  this  is  his  work. 
He  is  an  “apostle,”  that  is,  he  is  “one  sent”  on  a  divine 
mission,  as  he  solemnly  affirms.  He  has  been  delegated 
particularly  as  “a  teacher  of  the  Gentiles,”  that  is,  he  is  to 
bring  the  good  news  to  the  most  distant  and  godless  nations 
with  a  view  to  reaching  the  peoples  of  the  whole  world. 
He  is  to  instruct  these  Gentiles  as  to  the  nature  of  saving 
truth  and  of  the  Christian  faith.  All  this  shows  how  wide 
is  the  gracious  purpose  of  God.  Shall  the  sympathies  of  his 
people  be  more  restricted?  Shall  they  not  also  yearn  for  the 
salvation  of  all  men?  And  shall  they  not  express  this  yearn¬ 
ing  in  ceaseless  sympathetic  prayer? 

It  is  true  that  public  prayer  for  all  men  seems  to  us  at 
times  vague  and  unmeaning  and  unreal.  Let  us  remember, 
however,  that  while  unlimited  in  its  scope,  such  prayer  may 
be  specific  in  its  content.  Paul  by  way  of  illustration  des¬ 
ignates  “kings”  and  those  in  authority.  He  might  have 
continued  indefinitely  his  enumeration  of  the  different 
classes  who  are  the  proper  objects  of  petition.  Even  the 
prayer  of  public  assemblies  may  be  specific  and  pointed ; 
and  it  never  should  be  narrowed  by  selfishness  or  circum¬ 
scribed  by  provincialism,  or  enfeebled  by  unbelief.  Prayer 
always  involves  mysteries,  but  we  should  be  encouraged  to 
believe  that  its  exercise  is  related  to  the  salvation  of  human 
souls,  and  is  therefore  “good  and  acceptable  in  the  sight  of 
God.” 

2.  The  Demeanor  of  Men  and  Women.  Ch.  2 :  8-15 

8  I  desire  therefore  that  the  men  pray  in  every  place,  lifting 
up  holy  hands,  without  wrath  and  disputing.  9  In  like  manner, 


34 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  2:8-lS 


that  women  adorn  themselves  in  modest  apparel,  with  shame- 
fastness  and  sobriety ;  not  with  braided  hair,  and  gold  or  pearls 
or  costly  raiment;  10  but  (which  becometh  women  professing 
godliness)  through  good  works.  1 1  Let  a  woman  learn  in  quiet¬ 
ness  with  all  subjection.  12  But  I  permit  not  a  woman  to  teach, 
nor  to  have  dominion  over  a  man,  but  to  be  in  quietness.  13 
For  Adam  was  first  formed,  then  Eve;  14  and  Adam  was  not 
beguiled,  but  the  woman  being  beguiled  hath  fallen  into  trans¬ 
gression;  15  but  she  shall  be  saved  through  her  child-bearing, 
if  they  continue  in  faith  and  love  and  sanctification  with  so¬ 
briety. 

In  giving  instruction  to  Timothy  as  to  the  public  wor¬ 
ship  of  the  Christian  congregation,  Paul  first  emphasized 
the  universal  scope  of  public  prayer;  he  now  dwells  upon 
the  spirit  in  which  this  prayer  is  to  be  offered  and  upon  the 
behavior  of  the  worshipers. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  in  apostolic  days  the  manner 
of  public  worship  was  extremely  informal.  No  one  order 
of  service  was  followed  and  the  duty  of  offering  prayer  or 
of  giving  spiritual  instruction  was  limited  to  no  one  person. 
Here,  however,  Paul  enjoins  that  men  rather  than  women 
should  lead  in  these  acts  of  worship,  “in  every  place”  where 
congregations  of  believers  assemble  for  public  religious 
services.  “I  desire  therefore  that  the  men  pray  in  every 
place.”  The  force  of  the  command,  however,  is  not  upon 
this  restriction  as  to  the  persons  who  are  to  lead  in  worship 
but  upon  the  spirit  in  which  they  are  to  pray.  They  are  to 
do  so  “lifting  up  holy  hands,  without  wrath  and  disput¬ 
ing.”  The  lifting  up  of  the  hands  was  a  familiar  and  sig¬ 
nificant  attitude  in  prayer;  but  Paul  here  is  not  insisting 
upon  a  posture  of  the  body,  but  upon  a  state  of  the  heart. 
Those  who  pray  are  to  be  free  from  sin  and  yielded  to  the 
service  of  God.  Furthermore,  they  are  to  pray  “without 
wrath  and  disputing.”  Some  prefer  to  render  these  words, 
“without  anger  and  doubting,”  and  it  is  true  that  the  con¬ 
ditions  of  effectual  prayer  are  love  toward  man  and  faith 
in  God. 

However,  as  the  apostle  has  in  mind  the  whole  period  of 
public  worship,  he  may  refer  to  the  acrimonious  disputes 
and  heated  discussions  which  sometimes  arose  in  those  as^ 


I  Tim.  2:8-15 


PUBLIC  WORSHIP 


35 


semblies  of  the  primitive  Church.  Those  who  were  to  offer 
prayer  must  be  free  from  “wrath  and  disputing.”  Chris¬ 
tians  can  worship  God  acceptably  only  in  an  atmosphere 
of  love. 

As  to  the  women  worshipers,  they  are  to  conduct  them¬ 
selves  with  becoming  modesty.  They  are  not  to  attract 
attention  to  themselves  by  excessive  ornaments  and  by 
striking  costume,  but  rather  to  be  conspicuous  for  their 
goodness  and  grace.  In  describing  this  conduct  Paul  uses 
one  word  which  since  the  days  of  Wyclif  has  been  rendered 
into  English  by  “shamefastness,”  and  has  been  misunder¬ 
stood  usually  because  of  the  corrupt  spelling  “shamefaced¬ 
ness.”  The  word  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  “face”  nor 
with  “shame”  as  we  use  that  word.  “Shamefastness”  is 
that  conduct  which  is  “held  fast”  by  proper  self-respect. 
It  denotes  demeanor  which  is  restrained  by  true  womanly 
reserve. 

Accordingly,  Paul  advises,  “Let  a  woman  learn  in  quiet¬ 
ness  with  all  subjection.  But  I  permit  not  a  woman  to 
teach,  nor  to  have  dominion  over  a  man,  but  to  be  in  quiet¬ 
ness.”  The  reference  here  is  probably  to  “wives”  in  con¬ 
trast  to  “husbands”  and  specifically  to  their  conduct  in 
public  worship.  Paul  elsewhere  indicates  how  helpful  wo¬ 
men  may  be  as  teachers,  particularly  in  guiding  the  young. 
II  Tim.  3:  14;  Titus  2:  3.  Then,  too,  later  on  in  this 
epistle,  Paul  indicates  that  certain  specified  officers  are  ex¬ 
pected  to  exercise  the  function  of  teaching  the  congrega¬ 
tion.  He  here  is  urging  women  to  be  careful  neither  to  in¬ 
terrupt  the  worship  nor  to  assume  the  place  of  public  offi¬ 
cial  teachers  in  the  Christian  Church. 

Paul  gives  two  reasons  for  insisting  upon  choosing  a  man 
rather  than  his  wife  for  this  position  of  public  teacher.  The 
first  is  taken  from  the  story  of  the  creation:  “Adam  was 
first  formed,  then  Eve.”  This  to  the  apostle’s  mind  inti¬ 
mated  a  certain  independence  or  priority  or  responsibility 
which  places  upon  a  husband  some  duties  from  which  a 
wife  should  be  relieved. 

The  second  is  from  the  story  of  the  Eall :  “Adam  was  not 
beguiled,  but  the  woman  being  beguiled  hath  fallen  into 
transgression.”  Adam  acted  in  accordance  with  his  own 


36 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  2:8-15 


choice  and  with  his  eyes  open.  On  the  other  hand,  Eve  was 
deceived.  In  his  act  Adam  was  by  no  means  morally  supe¬ 
rior  to  his  wife,  even  if  it  is  granted  that  his  mind  was  more 
clear;  and  all  that  Paul  intimates  is  that  a  woman,  because 
of  her  greater  trustfulness,  is  more  easily  misled  into  false 
beliefs  and  so  is  less  qualified  to  be  a  public  teacher  of 
Christian  truth.  Paul  does  not  mean  that  a  woman  is  men¬ 
tally  or  morally  or  spiritually  inferior  to  a  man.  Both  men 
and  women  have  the  defects  of  their  qualities.  However, 
both  are  on  the  same  plane  before  God  and  are  heirs  to  his 
eternal  salvation.  Therefore,  Paul  adds  that,  while  a  wo¬ 
man  need  not  assume  the  official  duties  of  a  Christian  pas¬ 
tor,  nevertheless  she  may  enjoy  all  the  benefits  of  salva¬ 
tion,  in  her  own  more  natural  sphere  of  wife  and  mother, 
if  she  continues  to  be  faithful  and  loving  and  holy,  as  well 
as  modest  and  womanly  in  her  demeanor. 

It  is  not  difficult  to  understand  why  such  statements  by 
Paul  have  made  him  unpopular  with  certain  elect  ladies  of 
the  present  day.  Yet  it  should  be  said  in  defense  of  the 
apostle  that  his  writings,  taken  as  a  whole,  have  done  more 
for  the  emancipation  of  woman,  more  to  secure  her  social 
and  civil  and  political  rights,  than  the  productions  of  any 
other  author  who  could  be  named;  and  her  highest  happi¬ 
ness  is  enjoyed  only  in  those  countries  where  the  Christian 
principles  set  forth  by  the  great  apostle  are  accepted  and 
obeyed.  If  he  does,  however,  in  passages  like  this,  distin¬ 
guish  between  the  respective  duties  of  men  and  of  women, 
it  appears  to  many  that  this  distinction  “lies  deep  down  in 
the  facts  of  human  nature  as  originally  constituted.”  Let 
us  be  on  our  guard  against  drawing  wide  inferences  from 
this  particular  chapter,  even  as  to  these  respective  duties. 
Paul  is  giving  advice  to  Timothy  as  to  the  conduct  of  pub¬ 
lic  worship,  and  his  main  message  is  this,  namely,  that 
whatever  the  parts  assigned  to  men  or  to  women,  the  Chris¬ 
tian  pastor  should  secure  for  the  congregation  a  dignified,  a 
reverent,  a  spiritual  service,  with  a  view  to  the  edification 
of  believers,  and  the  salvation  of  all  men. 


I  Tim.  3:1-7  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  OFFICERS 


37 


B.  THE  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  OFFICERS.  Ch.  3 
1.  Bishops.  Ch.  3:  1-7 

1  Faithful  is  the  saying,  If  a  man  seeketh  the  office  of  a 
bishop,  he  desireth  a  good  work.  2  The  bishop  therefore  must 
be  without  reproach,  the  husband  of  one  wife,  temperate, 
sober-minded,  orderly,  given  to  hospitality,  apt  to  teach; 
3  no  brawler,  no  striker;  but  gentle,  not  contentious,  no  lover 
of  money;  4  one  that  ruleth  well  his  own  house,  having  his 
children  in  subjection  with  all  gravity;  5  (but  if  a  man 
knoweth  not  how  to  rule  his  own  house,  how  shall  he  take 
care  of  the  church  of  God?)  6  not  a  novice,  lest  being  puffed 
up  he  fall  into  the  condemnation  of  the  devil.  7  Moreover  he 
must  have  good  testimony  from  them  that  are  without; 
lest  he  fall  into  reproach  and  the  snare  of  the  devil. 

Every  Christian  pastor  is  personally  concerned  with  the 
matter  of  church  organization.  Whatever  theory  he  may 
hold  as  to  ecclesiastical  polity,  whether  Episcopal,  Presby¬ 
terian,  or  Congregational,  he  should  seek  to  know  the 
teachings  of  the  New  Testament  and  the  practice  of  the 
primitive  Church  in  matters  of  government  and  order. 
Such  knowledge  will  give  him  assurance  of  the  divine  sanc¬ 
tion  for  the  high  office  he  holds;  it  will  prevent  him  from 
becoming  autocratic  as  he  understands  the  duties  of  his 
fellow  officers,  and  his  right  relation  to  the  congregation ; 
it  will  protect  him  from  being  crushed  by  burdens  he  should 
share  with  others,  and  it  will  prepare  him  to  plan  and  con¬ 
duct  with  more  of  wisdom  and  efficiency  the  work  en¬ 
trusted  to  his  care. 

Therefore,  when  Paul  has  instructed  Timothy  as  to  the 
public  worship  of  the  church,  he  turns  next  to  give  direc¬ 
tions  as  to  its  permanent  organization.  He  specifies  two 
classes  of  officers,  “bishops”  and  “deacons,”  but  makes 
here  no  mention  of  their  respective  duties  or  of  their  re¬ 
spective  numbers.  The  whole  stress  is  laid  upon  their  qual¬ 
ifications. 

With  reference  to  the  “bishop,”  however,  it  is  stated 


38 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  3:1-7 


that  he  shall  have  ability  as  a  public  teacher,  and  the  very 
word  indicates  further  that  he  is  to  exercise  oversight  of  the 
congregation.  The  term  used  is  episkopos”  or  “over¬ 
seer,”  and  seems  to  refer  to  the  same  officer  elsewhere  de¬ 
signated  as  “presbyter”  or  “elder.”  The  office  itself  was 
derived  possibly  from  the  usage  among  the  Jews  whose 
synagogues  were  ruled  by  groups  of  “elders.” 

The  duties  of  the  “bishop”  in  the  early  Church,  there¬ 
fore,  appear  to  have  been  those  of  spiritual  oversight  and 
of  religious  instruction.  The  nearest  parallel  in  modern 
days  to  this  office  is  that  of  the  “pastor,”  and  it  is  for  this 
reason  that  these  letters  of  the  Apostle  Paul  are  known  as 
his  Pastoral  Epistles. 

In  referring  to  the  office  of  bishop,  Paul  begins  by  quot¬ 
ing  with  approval  a  popular  saying  to  the  effect  that  “if  a 
man  seeketh  the  office  of  a  bishop,  he  desireth  a  good 
work.”  The  currency  of  this  saying  indicates  the  high  es¬ 
timate  in  which  the  office  was  held.  The  saying  indicates 
that  the  position  was  one  not  merely  of  honor  or  of  ease, 
but  involved  “work”  of  the  highest  and  most  beneficent 
sort.  It  further  intimates  that  there  were  those  who  really 
aspired  to  the  office.  Such  aspirations  Paul  does  not  re¬ 
buke.  They  need  to  be  aroused  and  encouraged  in  the 
present  day.  When  one  receives  a  “call  to  the  ministry,” 
this  desire  is  simply  deepened  into  a  sacred  conviction  of 
duty. 

For  this  important  office  Paul  enumerates  certain  strict 
requirements.  It  is  to  be  noted  that  most  of  these  are 
moral  and  only  one  is  mental.  They  should  not  be  regarded 
as  ground  for  undervaluing  the  intellectual  qualifications 
for  the  Christian  ministry,  but  they  do  call  attention  to  the 
equally  important  spiritual  qualifications  which  are  de¬ 
manded,  and  they  indicate  that  an  attractiye  p^sonality. 
is^he  supreme  condition  of  successln  ministerial  service. 

Paul,  first  of  all,  demands  that  an  “overseer”  of  the 
Christian  congregation  must  be  “without  reproach,”  not 
a  man  who  merely  has  committed  no  offense,  but  one 
whose  conduct  gives  “no  handle”  which  could  be  laid  hold 
of  to  injure  his  reputation. 


I  Tim.  3:1-7  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  OFFICERS 


39 


He  must  be  “the  husband  of  one  wife,”  that  is,  a  faith¬ 
ful  husband,  or  literally,  “a  man  of  one  woman.”  The 
meaning  of  this  phrase  has  been  the  occasion  of  endless 
controversy  and  is  open  to  a  number  of  interpretations. 
1 1  can  hardly  refer  to  polygamy,  for  this  would  be  tolerated 
in  no  Church  member,  and  need  not  be  specified  in  the  case 
of  an  officer;  nor  does  it  refer,  probably,  to  remarriage  after 
the  death  of  a  wife,  as  Paul  encouraged  second  marriages, 
and  a  man  whose  first  wife  was  dead  might  be  in  all  reality, 
after  a  second  marriage,  “the  husband  of  one  wife.”  It  is 
quite  possible  that  the  reference  is  to  remarriage  after  di¬ 
vorce.  Such  an  act  might  involve  misunderstandings  and 
suspicions  from  which  a  church  officer  should  be  free. 

A  Christian  pastor  must  be  “temperate.”  This  no  more 
means  to  encourage  moderate  drinkers  than  the  former 
phrase  was  intended  to  disqualify  bachelors.  It  rather  de¬ 
notes  sobriety  in  judgment  as  well  as  in  act. 

It  is  somewhat  akin  to  the  following  term,  “sober- 
minded.”  This  last  does  not  denote  solemnity,  nor  gloom, 
although  the  appearance  of  some  ministers  may  have 
given  support  to  such  a  conclusion.  It  indicates  serious¬ 
ness,  but  more  exactly,  “self-control,”  and  that  perfect 
self-m^astery  which  keeps  one  from  the  indulgence  of  the 
sensualist  and  from  the  austerity  of  the  ascetic. 

“Orderly”  is  an  adjective  which  with  propriety  might 
be  pressed  upon  the  notice  of  many  ministers,  in  their  do¬ 
mestic  habits  as  well  as  in  their  pastoral  activities.  The 
term  refers,  however,  not  to  the  physical  but  to  the  moral 
sphere,  and  denotes  that  outward  conduct  which  is  ex¬ 
hibited  by  one  who  is  “temperate ”  and  “ sober-minded ” ; 
it  denotes  the  demeanor  of  one  who  is  not  disorderly,  who 
is  “well-behaved,”  who  is  neither  immodest  nor  shy,  who 
is  indeed  a  “true  Christian  gentleman.” 

The  next  virtue  which  Paul  enjoins  is  that  of  “hospital¬ 
ity.”  In  his  day  this  was  possibly  even  more  important 
than  it  is  in  our  day.  Then  proper  places  of  public  enter¬ 
tainment  were  difficult  to  find.  Ancient  inns  were  usually 
of  ill  repute.  Then,  too,  Christian  travelers  were  often  poor, 
and  hesitated  to  place  themselves  under  obligation  to  un¬ 
believers.  Thus,  by  entertaining  such  travelers,  particu- 


40 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  3:1-7 


larly  such  as  were  missionaries  of  the  cross,  the  influence 
of  the  Church  could  be  extended,  while  at  the  same  time 
the  spirit  of  love  and  sympathy  could  be  shown.  While  the 
modern  minister  need  not  impoverish  himself  or  overburden 
his  wife,  he  will  find  many  ways  of  manifesting  this  grace, 
or  at  least  of  revealing  the  generous  spirit  which  is  its  soul. 
How  perfectly  this  grace  is  being  shown  by  workers  on  the 
“foreign  field,”  only  those  who  have  accepted  its  bounties 
can  testify.  Paul  was  the  first  great  missionary  and  his 
words  are  understood  best  by  those  who  have  sojourned  in 
mission  lands. 

The  next  requirement  was  one  which  in  the  days  of  the 
apostle  began  to  assume  a  new  seriousness.  It  was  from 
some  points  of  view  the  most  important  of  all  the  quali¬ 
fications  he  suggested.  The  Church  was  being  deprived  by 
death  of  the  personal  followers  of  Christ  and  of  the  in¬ 
spired  prophets  who  had  first  proclaimed  the  gospel  and 
instructed  believers  in  Christian  truth.  It  was  necessary, 
therefore,  that  those  officers  who  were  given  oversight  of 
the  larger  congregations  should  be  “apt  to  teach.”  Only 
thus,  by  placing  upon  these  leaders  responsibility  for  doc¬ 
trine  as  well  as  for  discipline,  could  the  rising  heresies  be 
rebuked  and  the  purity  of  the  gospel  preserved.  Nor  is 
there  less  need  to-day  for  a  teaching  ministry.  One  who 
presides  over  the  spiritual  interests  of  a  modern  congrega¬ 
tion  should  possess  not  merely  the  moral  and  spiritual 
qualifications  Paul  here  enumerates,  but  should  also  be 
“apt  to  teach.”  A  shepherd  must  feed  his  flock;  a  pastor 
must  break  the  bread  of  life  for  his  people  and  must  rightly 
divide  the  word  of  truth.  Ability  for  this  sacred  task  is  the 
supreme  requirement  for  those  to  whom  is  entrusted  the 
care  of  souls. 

Referring  again  to  moral  equipment,  one  who  is  a 
“brawler”  or  “quarrelsome  over  wine,”  or  violent  in  a  simi¬ 
lar  manner  for  any  other  cause,  is  disqualified  for  the  minis¬ 
try  as  is  one  who  is  a  “striker,”  that  is  one  who  in  anger 
resorts  to  physical  force.  A  Christian  minister  must  be  “gen¬ 
tle,”  sweetly  reasonable,  eager  to  show  forbearance  and 
kindly  consideration;  he  must  not  be  “contentious”  or 


1  Tim.3:l-7  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  OFFICERS 


41 


quarrelsome,  even  as  to  matters  of  doctrine ;  nor  must  he  be 
a  “lover  of  money,”  a  passion  from  which,  in  spite  of  their 
poverty,  even  Christian  ministers  are  not  always  free.  He 
must  be  “one  that  ruleth  well  his  own  house,”  able  to  keep 
his  children  submissive  and  respectful,  for  this  will  prove 
his  capacity  for  government,  obviously  a  necessary  quali¬ 
fication  for  a  pastor;  “but  if  a  man  knoweth  not  how  to 
rule  his  own  house,  how  shall  he  take  care  of  the  church,” 
which  is  in  reality  the  household  of  God. 

Moreover,  one  is  not  to  be  appointed  to  the  oversight  of 
a  congregation  who  is  himself  a  recent  convert  to  Chris¬ 
tianity,  “a  novice.”  Such  appointment  might  be  necessary 
in  a  very  young  church  like  that  in  Crete.  Therefore,  Paul 
does  not  include  this  warning  in  writing  to  Titus;  but  at 
Ephesus,  where  twelve  or  more  years  had  passed  since  the 
church  was  formed,  it  would  be  possible  to  secure  as  officers 
men  of  some  maturity  and  spiritual  experience.  The  par¬ 
ticular  peril  of  a  young  convert  who  is  placed  in  a  position 
of  prominence  and  power  is  that  of  pride.  As  Paul  inti¬ 
mates,  a  “  novice  ”  might  be  puffed  up  with  self-conceit  and 
vanity,  and  so  fall  under  the  doom  incurred  by  the  Devil, 
and  ceasing  to  be  a  minister  of  light,  he  might  become  an 
instrument  of  darkness. 

On  the  other  hand,  and  as  a  last  requirement,  a  person 
chosen  as  pastor  “must  have  good  testimony  from  them 
that  are  without”;  that  is,  he  must  not  only  be  favorably 
known  by  his  fellow  Christians,  but  he  must  also  have  a 
good  reputation  in  the  community  where  the  church  is  lo¬ 
cated  ;  otherwise  his  ill  repute  may  bring  obloquy  upon  the 
church,  and  the  very  fact  that  he  is  under  suspicion  and  re¬ 
proach  may  prove  a  temptation  to  recklessness  and  sin; 
this  latter  seems  to  be  what  Paul  means  by  “the  snare  of 
the  devil.” 

Such  then  is  the  list  of  qualifications  for  the  pastoral 
office  enumerated  by  the  Apostle  Paul.  It  is  not  to  be  re¬ 
garded  as  exhaustive.  These  qualifications  demand  moral 
rather  than  mental  excellence.  They  refer  more  to  temper¬ 
ament,  tact,  experience,  and  reputation  than  to  intellectual 
gifts.  The  latter  certainly  are  not  to  be  regarded  as  un¬ 
necessary.  Nevertheless,  however  exacting  the  conditions 


42 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  3:8-13 


which  the  church  at  any  time  may  impose  upon  candidates 
for  the  ministry,  none  will  be  more  essential,  more  supreme¬ 
ly  important  than  that  of  a  high  Christian  character. 

2.  Deacons.  Ch.  3:  8-13 

8  Deacons  in  like  manner  must  be  grave,  not  double- 
tongued,  not  given  to  much  wine,  not  greedy  of  filthy  lucre; 

9  holding  the  mystery  of  the  faith  in  a  pure  conscience. 

10  And  let  these  also  first  be  proved;  then  let  them  serve  as 
deacons,  if  they  be  blameless.  11  Women  in  like  manner 
must  be  grave,  not  slanderers,  temperate,  faithful  in  all 
things.  12  Let  deacons  be  husbands  of  one  wife,  ruling 
their  children  and  their  own  houses  well.  13  For  they  that 
have  served  well  as  deacons  gain  to  themselves  a  good 
standing,  and  great  boldness  in  the  faith  which  is  in  Christ 
Jesus. 

After  specifying  the  qualifications  of  pastors,  or  “bish¬ 
ops,”  or  “overseers,”  Paul  passes  to  the  enumeration  of 
somewhat  similar  requirem.ents  for  those  who  are  to  be 
chosen  as  “deacons.”  The  exact  nature  of  this  secondary 
office  in  the  Christian  church  is  nowhere  set  forth  in  the 
New  Testament.  The  origin  of  the  office  and  its  main 
functions  are  supposed  to  be  described  in  the  sixth  chapter 
of  The  Acts,  when  seven  men  were  chosen  and  ordained  to 
administer  the  finances  and,  more  specifically,  to  care  for 
the  poor  of  the  congregation.  These  functions  are,  there¬ 
fore,  quite  commonly  assigned  to  this  office,  although  in 
this  matter  there  is  no  wide  agreement  among  the  different 
denominations  of  Christians.  Some  churches  assign  to 
deacons  spiritual  duties,  while  by  others  the  office  is  wholly 
disregarded. 

It  would  seem  to  be  wise,  and  in  accordance  with  the 
practice  of  the  primitive  Church,  to  have  in  every  congre¬ 
gation  the  service  of  such  authorized  officers  to  aid  the  pas¬ 
tor  in  his  work  and  to  relieve  him  from  the  burden  of  many 
administrative  duties,  particularly  in  the  care  of  the  more 
needy  members  of  the  flock. 

The  first  qualification  for  such  officers  is  that  they  should 
be  “dignified,”  or  as  the  word  is  also  translated,  “grave,” 


ITim.  3:8-13  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  OFFICERS 


43 


for  even  though  their  position  is  subordinate  to  that  of  the 
pastor,  it  is  a  place  of  honor,  and  their  work  is  done  in  the 
name  of  the  whole  congregation  of  believers.  Therefore, 
their  tasks,  however  humble,  are  to  be  performed  seriously 
and  with  becoming  gravity. 

Deacons  are  not  to  be  ‘'double-tongued,”  that  is,  saying 
one  thing  to  one  person  and  another  to  another,  and  so 
giving  rise  to  misunderstandings  and  discord  and  forfeit¬ 
ing  the  confidence  of  the  churches  they  serve. 

They  are  not  to  be  addicted  to  wine,  nor  “greedy  of  filthy 
lucre.”  This  last  phrase  of  the  apostle  does  not  indicate 
that  he  regarded  money  as  evil  in  itself.  Possibly  the  trans¬ 
lation  “base  gain”  may  be  preferable.  The  reference  here 
is  not  merely  to  the  love  of  money,  but  to  the  dishonest 
acquiring  of  money;  and  the  warning  here  is  particularly 
pertinent  for  deacons,  as  they  are  expected  to  administer 
the  finances  of  the  church  and  to  be  the  custodians  of  its 
trust  funds.  Judas  was  not  the  last  treasurer  who  betrayed 
his  Lord  for  a  few  pieces  of  silver. 

On  the  contrary,  the  deacons  were  to  be  men  whose  con¬ 
sciences  were  clear,  or  as  Paul  says,  men  “holding  the  mys¬ 
tery  of  the  faith  in  a  pure  conscience.”  A  “mystery,”  in 
the  New  Testament,  means  a  truth  once  concealed  but  now 
revealed.  “The  mystery  of  the  faith,”  therefore,  means 
the  knowledge  of  Christ  and  his  salvation.  This  was  to  be 
regarded  as  a  sacred  treasure  and  those  who  held  it  in  their 
hearts  were  to  keep  their  consciences  clean  from  any  stain. 

Nor  were  these  deacons  to  be  appointed  hastily  to  their 
office.  They  should  “first  be  proved,”  or  tested,  either  by 
a  period  of  probationary  training,  or  by  a  careful  exam¬ 
ination  of  their  past,  and  only  when  found  “blameless,”  or 
free  from  accusation,  could  they  be  allowed  to  serve  the 
church. 

Their  “wives,”  too,  must  meet  the  same  requirements 
as  themselves,  for  they  would  often  find  it  necessary  to  share 
with  their  husbands  the  performance  of  delicate  duties. 
It  is  true,  many  feel  that  the  reference  here  is  not  to  the 
“wives”  of  deacons,  as  indicated  by  the  Authorized  Ver¬ 
sion,  but  to  an  order  of  “deaconesses.”  The  Revised  Ver- 


44 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  3:8-13 


sion  leaves  the  matter  undetermined  by  translating  the 
word,  “women.”  It  is  surely  safe  to  say  that  the  require¬ 
ments  here  mentioned  are  such  as  may  well  be  regarded 
proper  for  all  women  workers  in  the  church,  whether  dea¬ 
conesses,  the  wives  of  deacons,  or  other  women  performing 
similar  tasks. 

These  women  must  be  “grave,”  that  is,  comporting 
themselves  with  the  same  dignity  as  the  deacons.  They 
must  not  be  “slanderers,”  for  it  would  be  very  easy  to  make 
a  wrong  use  of  the  many  details  which  they  would  learn  in 
reference  to  the  private  lives  of  the  members  of  the  con¬ 
gregation  and  of  their  families. 

They  must  be  “temperate”  and  sane,  and  not  governed 
merely  by  their  emotions.  They  must  be  absolutely  re¬ 
liable  and  trustworthy  and  “faithful  in  all  things.” 

This  reference  is  made  to  the  wives  of  deacons,  probably 
because  Paul  is  proceeding  to  refer,  as  a  climax  of  his  re¬ 
quirements,  to  the  family  life  of  these  church  officers.  They 
are  to  be  “faithful  husbands,  ”or,  as  the  words  are  commonly 
rendered,  “husbands  of  one  wife” ;  they  are  to  be  men  who 
are  “ruling  their  children  and  their  own  houses  well.” 

These  latter  requirements  are  made  also  of  bishops,  but 
on  different  grounds.  Bishops  are  thus  to  show  their  qual¬ 
ification  to  be  spiritual  rulers  and  “overseers” ;  deacons  are 
thus  to  win  and  preserve  the  esteem  and  confidence  of  their 
fellow  Christians. 

Therefore  Paul  concludes  by  saying  that  those  who  meet 
these  requirements,  both  as  to  private  life  and  as  to  official 
conduct,  ‘  ‘gain  to  themselves  a  good  standing,  and  great 
boldness  in  the  faith  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus.”  The  exact 
meaning  of  these  phrases  is  not  quite  clear;  but  from  what 
he  has  just  written,  he  seems  to  indicate  that  such  fidelity 
in  office,  however  humble  may  be  the  duties  of  the  deacons, 
will  not  fail  to  secure  for  them  high  respect  and  enviable 
positions  of  wholesome  influence  in  the  church.  They  will 
experience  also  great  “boldness,”  or  “assurance,”  in  their 
service,  not  only  because  they  consciously  enjoy  the  confi¬ 
dence  of  the  congregations  they  serve,  but  because  of 
their  continual  faith  in  Christ  Jesus,  their  Master  and 
their  Lord. 


I  Tim.  3:14-16  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  OFFICERS 


45 


3.  The  Importance  of  the  Church.  Ch.  3:  14-16 

14  These  things  write  I  unto  thee,  hoping  to  come  unto  thee 
shortly;  15  but  if  I  tarry  long,  that  thou  mayest  know  how 
men  ought  to  behave  themselves  in  the  house  of  God,  which 
is  the  church  of  the  living  God,  the  pillar  and  ground  of  the 
truth.  16  And  without  controversy  great  is  the  mystery  of 
godliness ; 

He  who  was  manifested  in  the  flesh. 

Justified  in  the  spirit. 

Seen  of  angels. 

Preached  among  the  nations. 

Believed  on  in  the  world. 

Received  up  in  glory. 

Nothing  can  be  of  more  encouragement  to  a  Christian 
minister  in  his  important  work,  nothing  can  make  him 
more  careful  in  conducting  the  public  service  of  the  con¬ 
gregation  and  in  securing  the  appointment  of  duly  qualified 
officers,  than  his  realizing  the  divine  origin  of  the  Church 
and  its  sacred  function  of  supporting  and  transmitting  the 
glorious  truth  which  centers  in  Christ. 

Thus,  when  Paul  has  given  Timothy  instructions  as  to 
public  worship  and  as  to  the  qualification  of  church  officers, 
he  explains  his  motives  in  writing  and  here  emphasizes  his 
exhortations  by  reminding  Timothy  of  the  important  place 
which  the  Church  occupies,  and  by  giving  a  brief  popular 
summary  of  its  most  important  teachings. 

He  states  that  he  expects  soon  to  visit  Timothy  in  Ephe- 
sus:  “These  things  write  I  unto  thee,  hoping  to  come  unto 
thee  shortly.”  He  realizes,  however,  the  uncertainty  of 
his  plans  and  the  possibility  of  delay,  “but  if  I  tarry 
long,  that  thou  mayest  know  how  men  ought  to  behave 
themselves  in  the  house  of  God.”  He  feels,  therefore,  that 
in  any  case  these  general  directions  will  indicate  how  men 
and  women,  pastors  and  deacons,  are  to  conduct  them¬ 
selves  in  the  Church, which  is  in  reality  the  family  or  house¬ 
hold  of  God,  which  as  such  should  be  carefully  directed. 
He  further  designates  this  divine  household  as  “the  church 
of  the  living  God,”  indicating  that  it  is  not  a  human  but 
a  divine  institution,  and  that  it  must  be  ordered  according 
to  the  will  of  God. 


46 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  3:14-16 


Further  still,  Paul  designates  the  Church  as  “the  pillar 
and  ground  of  the  truth,”  for  just  as  a  pillar  supports  a  roof, 
or  as  a  foundation  sustains  a  building,  so  this  society  of 
believers  has  been  divinely  appointed  to  sustain  and  up¬ 
hold  in  the  world  the  truth  which  God  has  revealed  to  man. 

That  the  whole  system  of  Christian  belief  is  thus  a  divine 
revelation  and  not  a  human  invention,  Paul  indicates  by 
describing  it  as  “the  mystery  of  godliness.”  According  to 
New  Testament  usage,  a  “mystery’ \does  not  signify  some¬ 
thing  concealed  or  baffling  or  obscure,  but  it  denotes  a  se¬ 
cret  which  has  been  made  known;  thus  the  counsels  of 
grace  for  the  salvation  of  mankind  have  been  revealed 
through  Jesus  Christ  and  are  summarized  in  the  gospel, 
which  is  called  thus  specifically  “the  mystery  of  godli¬ 
ness,”  for  its  great  purpose  and  its  result  is  to  produce  god¬ 
liness,  or  to  persuade  and  enable  men  to  do  the  holy  will  of 
God. 

This  mystery  Paul  declares  to  be  “great,”  not  in  its  ob¬ 
scurity,  but  in  its  importance;  it  is  weighty,  significant, 
sublime.  1 1  is  such  ‘  ‘  without  controversy,  ’ ’  that  is,  beyond 
all  question  or  doubt.  That  its  greatness  is  admitted  and 
acknowledged,  Paul  intimates  as  he  summarizes  its  main 
contents  by  quoting  a  primitive  creed  or  confession  of  the 
Christian  faith.  Because  of  the  balanced  and  rhythmic 
structure  of  the  phrases,  many  believe  it  to  be  the  frag¬ 
ment  of  an  ancient  hymn.  Therefore  it  is  printed  in  the 
Revised  Version  as  a  stanza  of  six  lines,  or  as  two  stanzas 
with  three  lines  each.  Possibly  better  still,  it  may  be  re¬ 
garded  as  composed  of.  three  couplets,  for  this  grouping  of 
the  phrases  brings  out  more  forcibly  the  contrasts  of  the 
successive  lines : 

“Manifested  in  the  flesh. 

Justified  in  the  spirit, 

“Seen  of  angels. 

Preached  among  the  nations, 

“Believed  on  in  the  world, 

Received  up  in  glory.” 


I  Tim.  3:14-16  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  OFFICERS 


47 


The  Person  who  is  the  subject  of  each  one  of  these  state¬ 
ments  is  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.  It  matters  little  whether 
the  first  line  reads  “God  was  manifested  in  the  flesh,”  or 
“  He  who  was  manifested  in  the  flesh.”  The  latter  is  proba¬ 
bly  more  correct,  but  in  either  case  we  have  a  clear  and 
definite  staternent  of  the  Deity  and  incarnation  of  Christ. 
It  would  be  impossible  to  make  such  a  statement  of  a  being 
who  was  only  man.  “  He  who  was  manifested  in  the  flesh  ” 
previously  must  have  been  higher  and  greater  than  man. 
This  statement  of  Paul  is  like  that  of  John:  “The  Word 
became  flesh.”  He  who  had  existed  from  all  eternity  in  the 
form  of  God  was  manifest  in  mortal  flesh  as  the  God  Man, 
Christ  Jesus. 

He  was  “justified  in  the  spirit” ;  here  the  first  contrast  is 
drawn:  it  is  between  “flesh”  and  “spirit,”  but  these  words 
are  not  used  in  the  sense  in  which  they  are  commonly 
placed  in  contrast  by  the  apostle  when  he  wishes  to  dis¬ 
tinguish  that  which  is  evil  in  Christians  from  that  which  is 
good.  By  “spirit”  he  here  means  the  inmost  being  of 
Christ —  his  heart,  his  soul,  the  spring  of  all  his  motives 
and  desires;  even  in  this  realm  he  was  shown  or  declared  or 
proved  to  be  just  and  sinless  and  faultless  and  perfect. 
The  first  line  speaks  of  his  real  humanity,  the  second  of  his 
complete  holiness;  the  former  of  his  actual  manhood,  the 
latter  of  his  spiritual  perfection. 

He  was  “seen  of  angels.”  They  sang  at  his  birth,  they 
ministered  in  the  hour  of  his  temptation.  They  attended 
his  teaching  in  Galilee.  They  strengthened  him  in  his 
agony.  They  guarded  his  tomb.  They  proclaimed  his  res¬ 
urrection.  They  witnessed  his  ascension  and  predicted  his 
return.  Of  their  presence  he  was  ever  conscious,  and  now 
in  countless  array  they  stand  about  his  throne. 

In  contrast  with  the  angels,  Gentiles  are  next  mentioned. 
He  was  “preached  among  the  nations.”  Pie  has  not  been 
seen  by  them,  but  what  may  be  even  better,  he  has  been  so 
proclaimed  that  by  accepting  the  message,  men  of  all  na¬ 
tions  are  being  transformed  into  his  likeness  and  fitted  for 
his  service. 

Thus  the  last  couplet  contains  this  contrast:  “Believed 
on  in  the  world,  received  up  in  glory.”  There  is,  then,  a 


48 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  3:14-16 


sphere  brighter  and  better  than  the  world  in  which  we  live. 
Into  it  our  Lord  has  entered,  and  to  it  he  will  bring  all  who 
accept  the  salvation  he  has  prepared.  He  calls  them  to  be 
heirs  of  his  glory. 

Whether  these  six  lines  were  borrowed  from  an  early 
Christian  hymn,  or  whether  they  here  were  first  written 
by  Paul,  they  contain  such  a  majesty  of  meaning  that  the 
apostle  is  justified  in  declaring  that  such  realities  are  of  su¬ 
preme  importance,  and  that  the  Church  which  maintains 
and  supports  them  is  “  the  pillar  and  ground  of  the  truth  ” ; 
and  it  is  not  strange  that  he  was  deeply  concerned  about 
the  public  services  and  the  appointed  officers  of  this  divine 
society  which  was  ordained  to  convey  these  glad  tidings  to 
all  the  world. 


I  Tim.  4;  1-5 


LIFE  AND  DUTIES 


49 


III.  Advice  to  Timothy  Chs.  4:1  to  6:2 

A.  PERSONAL  LIFE  AND  DUTIES.  Ch.  4 
1.  Warning  Against  False  Doctrine.  Ch.  4:  1-5 

1  But  the  Spirit  saith  expressly,  that  in  later  times  some  shall 
fall  away  from  the  faith,  giving  heed  to  seducing  spirits  and 
doctrines  of  demons,  2  through  the  hypocrisy  of  men  that 
speak  lies,  branded  in  their  own  conscience  as  with  a  hot 
iron;  3  forbidding  to  marry,  and  commanding  to  abstain  from 
meats,  which  God  created  to  be  received  with  thanksgiving 
by  them  that  believe  and  know  the  truth.  4  For  every  creature 
of  God  is  good,  and  nothing  is  to  be  rejected,  if  it  be  received 
with  thanksgiving:  5  for  it  is  sanctified  through  the  word  of 
God  and  prayer. 

No  pastor  can  hope  to  escape  the  pain  of  having  false 
teachers  appear  among  the  members  of  his  flock.  Against 
this  peril,  however,  he  must  be  on  his  guard.  At  times  it 
will  be  necessary  to  discipline  even  church  officers  whose 
influence  is  subversive  of  the  peace  and  faith  of  the  con¬ 
gregation,  as  Paul  indicates  in  the  next  chapter.  Here, 
however,  in  the  chapter  now  opening,  he  dwells  upon  the 
first  and  fundamental  duty  of  a  pastor,  under  such  cir¬ 
cumstances,  which  is  to  counteract  such  evil  influences  by 
right  living  and  sound  teaching. 

Such  personal  advice  to  Timothy  seems  to  form  the 
substance  of  the  remaining  portion  of  the  letter  and  to  con¬ 
stitute  its  second  great  division.  The  line  of  separation 
between  the  parts,  however,  is  not  to  be  emphasized  too 
strongly.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  course  of  thought  is 
rather  continuous.  Paul  has  just  given  a  summary  of  Chris¬ 
tian  doctrine  in  order  to  emphasize  the  need  of  properly 
organizing  the  Church  which  is  '‘the  pillar  and  ground  of 
the  truth.”  He  now  turns  to  warn  Timothy  of  the  attacks 
certain  to  be  made  upon  the  faith  of  which  the  Church  is 
the  appointed  support  and  stay.  The  very  fact  of  such 
false  teaching  further  emphasizes  what  Paul  has  said  in  the 


50 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  4:  1-5 


first  part  of  the  letter  in  reference  to  the  necessity  of  allow¬ 
ing  only  properly  qualified  persons  to  conduct  the  public 
worship  and  to  serve  as  officers  of  the  Church. 

Paul  here  declares  that  in  spite  of  all  that  the  Church 
can  do  to  guard  the  sacred  deposit  of  truth,  defections  from 
the  faith  would  surely  take  place.  Such  had  been  predicted 
already  and  with  great  definiteness  by  men  who  were  di¬ 
vinely  inspired:  “But  the  Spirit  saith  expressly,  that  in 
later  times  some  shall  fall  away  from  the  faith.”  Years 
before,  when  bidding  farewell  to  the  Ephesian  elders,  the 
apostle  himself  had  said,  “  I  know  that  after  my  departing 
grievous  wolves  shall  enter  in  among  you,  not  sparing  the 
flock;  and  from  among  your  own  selves  shall  men  arise, 
speaking  perverse  things,  to  draw  away  the  disciples  after 
them.”  Acts  20:29,30.  So,  too,  in  an  earlier  letter  to  the 
Thessalonians,  he  pictured  a  great  apostasy  which  is  im¬ 
mediately  to  precede  the  close  of  the  present  age.  To 
these  and  to  similar  predictions  of  other  apostles  and  of  our 
Lord  himself,  Paul  may  here  refer.  However,  it  is  evident 
that  he  is  not  fixing  his  thought  upon  a  distant  future. 
Although  he  speaks  of  “later  times,”  he  proceeds  to  warn 
Timothy  against  perils  already  prevalent.  Indeed,  the 
frequent  references  in  the  New  Testament  to  the  dark  days 
of  doubt  and  apostasy  which  precede  the  return  of  Christ 
are  so  phrased  that  the  reader  may  be  warned  by  them  of 
dangers  from  which  no  age  is  free,  and  may  be  on  guard 
against  forms  of  unbelief  and  against  corrupting  practices 
which  are  prevalent  in  every  age. 

The  cause  of  the  falling  away  which  Paul  here  describes 
is  traced Ty  him  to  the  influence  of  “seducing  spirits  and 
doctrines  of  demons.”  Thus,  in  contrast  to  the  Spirit  of 
truth,  he  intimates  that  the  false  teachings  prevalent  in 
the  Ephesian  church  are  to  be  ultimately  attributed  to  the 
Spirit  of  error.  These  doctrines  taught  by  demons,  how¬ 
ever,  are  voiced  through  human  agents,  by  men  who  in 
“  hypocrisy”  and  under  the  guise  of  being  spiritual  leaders, 
“  speak  lies.”  They  have  grown  so  accustomed  to  sin,  they 
are  such  willing  and  obedient  servants  of  error,  as  to  be 
“branded  in  their  own  conscience  as  with  a  hot  iron.” 

The  two  particular  errors  of  which  they  are  guiltyi  as 


I  Tim.  4:  1-5 


LIFE  AND  DUTIES 


51 


specified  here,  are  their  “forbidding  to  marry,  and  com¬ 
manding  to  abstain  from  meats.’’  The  heresy,  therefore, 
was  in  the  nature  of  a  false  asceticism.  It  taught  self- 
denial  for  its  own  sake,  rather  than  with  a  view  to  accom¬ 
plishing  some  great  good. 

Paul  often  is  supposed  to  have  opposed  marriage.  This 
passage,  on  the  contrary,  shows  that,  to  his  mind,  com¬ 
pulsory  celibacy,  as  a  rule  of  life,  was  of  demonic  rather 
than  of  divine  origin.  Paul  advised  marriage;  he  regarded 
it  as  a  divine  ordinance.  Even  for  a  “bishop’’  or  a  “dea¬ 
con’’  he  declared  it  to  be  proper  for  one  to  be  “  the  husband 
of  one  wife,’’  and  to  be  the  head  of  a  godly  household.  It 
is  true,  however,  that  Paul  elsewhere  admits  that  excep¬ 
tions  to  this  rule  might  be  allowable  and  even  admirable. 
He  declares  that  occasionally  one  may  have  the  gift  of 
celibacy  and  that,  at  a  special  crisis  in  history  and  to  per¬ 
form  a  particular  task  for  the  Church,  he  might  remain  un¬ 
married.  He  never  indicates,  however,  that  this  is  a  ground 
for  praise  or  an  indication  of  any  higher  degree  of  spiritual 
life.  The  latter  was  the  essence  of  the  false  teaching  which 
he  here  rebukes.  This  departure  from  the  faith  was  led  by 
men  who  regarded  marriage  as  degrading  and  who  forbade 
those  to  marry  who  wished  to  be  well-pleasing  to  God  and 
to  attain  the  greater  heights  of  spiritual  experience. 

Thus,  too,  in  reference  to  the  command  given  by  the 
false  teachers,  “to  abstain  from  meats,’’  that  is,  from  food 
of  various  kinds,  and  not  simply  from  flesh;  although  it  is 
true  that  the  latter  was  usually  prohibited  by  the  leaders 
of  the  early  heretical  sects.  Paul,  of  course,  agreed  with  his 
Master  in  admitting  that  fasting  might  be  a  means  to  a 
worthy  end.  It  might  be  endured  for  the  sake  of  physical 
health,  or  to  express  real  sorrow,  or  to  share  food  with 
others,  or  to  make  some  spiritual  exercise  more  profitable; 
but  what  he  condemned  was  the  teaching  that  fasting  is  in 
itself  praiseworthy  or  that  refraining  from  certain  kinds  of 
proper  foods  is  meritorious  or  wins  the  special  favor  of  God. 
On  the  contrary,  he  insists  that  food  has  been  “created  to 
be  received  with  thanksgiving  by  them  that  believe  and 
know  the  truth’’ ;  not  by  these  alone,  but  by  these  as  well 
as  by  others.  Paul  would  teach  that  the  fact  of  being  a 


52 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  4:6-10 


Christian  does  not  place  one  in  a  different  position  from 
his  fellow  men  in  relation  to  the  things  which  God  has 
created  for  the  good  of  the  human  race.  Those  who  “be¬ 
lieve  and  know  the  truth”  are  not  for  that  reason  to  ab¬ 
stain  from  any  kind  of  healthful  food;  as  Paul  adds,  “for 
every  creature  of  God  is  good,  and  nothing  is  to  be  re¬ 
jected,  if  it  be  received  with  thanksgiving.”  The  word 
“creature”  might  suggest  only  animate  things,  but  the 
reference  here  is  more  wide  and  refers  to  everything  made 
by  God.  Everything  is  “good”  and  is  to  be  gratefully  ac¬ 
cepted  and  used  in  accordance  with  its  divine  intent  and 
purpose.  To  make  distinctions  between  various  kinds  of 
wholesome  food  on  the  ground  that  the  use  of  one  and  the 
rejection  of  the  other  is  a  sign  or  means  of  spiritual  grace, 
is  not  only  absurd ;  it  is  also  the  mark  and  proof  of  a  spu¬ 
rious  asceticism,  even  of  demonic  unbelief. 

True  faith  accepts  all  the  beneficent  creations  of  God 
with  thanksgiving,  and  even  the  most  common  food  “is 
sanctified  through  the  word  of  God  and  prayer.”  This 
latter  seems  rightly  to  refer  to  the  custom  of  thanksgiving 
before  meals.  This  was  in  accordance  with  the  example  of 
our  Lord,  who  blessed  the  bread  before  he  broke  it.  It 
seems  to  have  been  a  universal  custom  in  the  early  Church. 
These  thanksgivings  included  phrases  from  Scripture  and 
these  are  possibly  indicated  by  “the  word  of  God.”  They 
were  solemn  but  joyful  recognitions  of  the  goodness  and 
mercy  and  grace  of  God.  They  designated  him  as  the 
Giver  of  every  good  and  perfect  gift.  No  food  of  which 
believers  partake  in  such  a  spirit  of  gratitude  can  be  re¬ 
garded  as  evil;  even  the  simplest  repast  thus  becomes  al¬ 
most  a  sacrament. 

2.  Exhortation  to  Godly  Living.  Ch.  4:  6-10 

6  If  thou  put  the  brethren  in  mind  of  these  things,  thou 
shalt  be  a  good  minister  of  Christ  Jesus,  nourished  in  the 
words  of  the  faith,  and  of  the  good  doctrine  which  thou  hast 
followed  until  now:  7  but  refuse  profane  and  old  wives’ 
fables.  And  exercise  thyself  unto  godliness:  8  for  bodily 
exercise  is  profitable  for  a  little;  but  godliness  is  profitable 
for  all  things,  having  promise  of  the  life  which  now  is,  and 
of  that  which  is  to  come.  9  Faithful  is  the  saying  and  worthy 


I  Tim.  4 :  6-10 


LIFE  AND  DUTIES 


53 


of  all  acceptation.  10  For  to  this  end  we  labor  and  strive, 
because  we  have  our  hope  set  on  the  living  God,  who  is  the 
Saviour  of  all  men,  specially  of  them  that  believe. 

In  the  previous  paragraph  Paul  has  been  warning  Tim¬ 
othy  against  the  false  doctrines  which  taught  that  Chris¬ 
tians  would  attain  to  higher  holiness  if  they  refrained  from 
marriage  and  abstained  from  certain  foods.  Timothy  is 
here  exhorted  to  withstand  such  false  doctrine  by  sound 
teaching  and  by  personal  piety.  In  his  teaching  he  is  to 
present  to  his  fellow  Christians  the  truths  which  Paul  has 
just  set  forth  as  to  the  proper  use  of  food,  which  God  had 
created  for  the  use  of  man,  which  was  to  be  received  with 
thanksgiving  and  sanctified  by  prayer.  He  is  to  rebuke 
asceticism  and  to  show  the  right  relation  which  Christians 
are  to  sustain  to  the  good  gifts  God  has  granted  for  the 
well-being  of  men:  “If  thou  put  the  brethren  in  mind  of 
these  things,  thou  shalt  be  a  good  minister  of  Christ  Jesus.’’ 

The  last  phrase  is  one  of  peculiar  beauty  if  used  to  de¬ 
scribe  a  faithful  pastor  of  a  Christian  church ;  it  is  a  high 
honor  to  be  called  in  that  sense  “a  good  minister  of  Christ 
Jesus.’’  Paul,  however,  does  not  use  the  phrase  with  this 
meaning.  By  the  word  “minister’’  he  does  not  refer  to  a 
church  officer;  he  uses  the  term  in  its  original  meaning  of  a 
“servant,’’  and  he  declares  that  by  such  true  teaching 
Timothy  will  show  himself  to  be  a  faithful  servant  of  his 
Lord,  he  will  render  a  real  service  to  Jesus  Christ.  He  will 
show  that  he  is  “nourished  in  the  words  of  the  faith,’’  and 
indeed  he  must  continue  to  be  so  nourished  by  the  sound 
teaching  of  the  gospel  as  to  practical  life,  if  his  service  is  to 
be  faithful.  Such  teaching  Timothy  had  accepted  always, 
as  Paul  intimates  in  the  phrase,  “which  thou  hast  followed 
until  now.’’ 

On  the  other  hand,  Timothy  must  be  careful  to  resist 
and  to  shun  the  wicked  and  silly  myths  of  the  false  teach¬ 
ers:  “But  refuse  profane  and  old  wives’  fables.’’  Instead 
of  following  the  foolish  and  evil  practices  of  the  false  as¬ 
cetics,  Timothy  must  train  himself  in  spirituality  and  dis¬ 
cipline  himself  in  true  piety.  “  Exercise  thyself  unto  godli¬ 
ness,’’  Paul  significantly  says.  The  severity  to  the  body 


54 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  4:6-10 


advocated  by  false  teachers  was  worse  than  useless;  how¬ 
ever,  there  is  a  kind  of  bodily  discipline  which  may  be  a 
help  to  holiness,  namely,  the  refusal  to  4II0W  the  appetites 
to  rule  the  will,  the  restraint  and  control  exercised  over  the 
body  by  a  sound  mind  and  a  pure  heart. 

Such  discipline,  like  all  physical  training,  does  have  its 
benefits;  but  there  is  even  a  higher  discipline  of  the  spirit 
itself,  which  brings  to  man  unlimited  and  abiding  good: 
“for  bodily  exercise  is  profitable  for  a  little;  but  godliness 
is  profitable  for  all  things,  having  promise  of  the  life  which 
now  is,  and  of  that  which  is  to  come.”  A  consistent 
Christian  walk  does  not  necessarily  forfeit  the  best  things 
which  the  present  life  has  to  promise,  and  it  is  certain  to 
issue  in  the  higher  joys  of  the  life  that- is  to  come.  In  a 
certain  real  sense  the  Christian  “makes  the  best  of  both 
worlds.”  Piety  is  consistent  with  worldly  advancement; 
under  certain  conditions  it  secures  it;  however,  to  practice 
piety  for  the  sake  of  such  advancement  is  impious.  The 
Christian  may  enjoy  prosperity,  but  if  he  follows  Christ 
only  for  the  sake  of  gain,  he  does  not  understand  his  Mas¬ 
ter.  The  “promise,”  however,  assured  to  piety  is  of  the 
truest  blessedness,  and  of  glorious  well-being  both  here  and 
hereafter.  Such  blessedness  may  be  accompanied  by  pres¬ 
ent  discomfort  and  self-denial  and  distress;  but,  for  those 
who  really  trust  in  God,  it  will  issue  in  the  highest  possible 
life  and  in  eternal  joy:  “godliness  is  profitable,”  in  this 
sense;  and  Paul  declares  the  “saying”  to  be  “ faithful ”  and 
“vvwthy  of  all  acceptation;”  but  he  at  once  adds  that  it 
may  be  accompanied  by  present  pain  and  discipline:  “for 
to  this  end  we  labor  and  strive,  because  we  have  our  hope 
set  on  the  living  God.”  He  will  at  last  vindicate  his  claims 
to  justice.  He  gives  grace  needed  for  the  present,  and 
promises  glory  in  the  world  to  come.  He  is  the  “Saviour 
of  all  men,”  for  them  he  has  provided  life  in  all  its  fullness, 
he  has  made  possible,  for  all,  the  highest  well-being;  yet  he 
conditions  this  blessedness  upon  faith  in  Christ,  so  that 
while  God  is  the  Saviour  of  all,  Paul  can  add,  “specially  of 
them  that  believe.” 

In  contrast  with  spurious  asceticism,  true  piety  is  “prof¬ 
itable  for  all  things”;  in  contrast  with  the  bodily  training 


I  Tim.  4:  11-16  LIFE  AND  DUTIES 


55 


which  may  secure  ''a  corruptible  crown,”  those  who  exer¬ 
cise  themselves  unto  godliness  will  receive  a  crown  of  life 
that  will  never  fade  away. 

3.  Encouragement  to  Faithful  Service.  Ch.  4:  11-16 

11  These  things  command  and  teach.  12  Let  no  man  de¬ 
spise  thy  [youth;  but  be  thou  an  ensample  to  them  that 
believe,  in  word,  in  manner  of  life,  in  love,  in  faith,  in  purity. 

13  Till  I  come,  give  heed  to  reading,  to  exhortation,  to  teaching. 

14  Neglect  not  the  gift  that  is  in  thee,  which  was  given  thee 
by  prophecy,  with  the  laying  on  of  the  hands  of  the  presbytery. 

15  Be  diligent  in  these  things;  give  thyself  wholly  to  them; 
that  thy  progress  may  be  manifest  unto  all.  16  Take  heed  to 
thyself,  and  to  thy  teaching.  Continue  in  these  things ;  for  in 
doing  this  thou  shalt  save  both  thyself  and  them  that  hear 
thee. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  imagine  six  verses  more  weighted 
with  wise  counsel  for  a  young  minister  than  these.  Nor 
are  they  lacking  in  significance  to  the  members  of  the  flock, 
who  need  to  know  the  nature  of  the  cares  and  duties  and 
temptations  and  trials  which  press  upon  the  Christian  pas¬ 
tor,  who  thus  may  be  the  better  prepared  to  extend  to  him 
their  sympathy,  and  to  profit  by  his  ministry. 

First  of  all,  Paul  enjoins  Timothy  to  command  and  to 
commend  the  conduct  and  the  principles  he  has  just  been 
outlining,  in  view  of  the  false  teaching  at  Ephesus.  Such 
errors  of  practice  can  be  met  in  part  by  the  godly  life  which 
Timothy  has  been  encouraged  to  lead.  However,  the  silent 
influence  of  a  holy  example  may  not  always  suffice  to  cor¬ 
rect  evil  conduct.  Sometimes  it  is  necessary  for  a  minister 
of  Christ  to  speak  out  with  that  authority  granted  him  by 
the  whole  Church  at  the  time  of  his  ordination.  Therefore 
Paul  urges,  “These  things  command  and  teach”;  Timothy 
is  to  enjoin  certain  behavior  and  he  is  to  “  teach  ”  the  moral 
principles  involved.  Some  Christian  truths  are  so  funda¬ 
mental  and  some  forms  of  duty  so  obvious  that  a  minister 
can  often  speak  with  authority  even  though  he  is  not  dic¬ 
tatorial  or  dogmatic. 

One  thing  which  might  have  tempted  Timothy  to  keep 
silent,  even  in  the  face  of  obvious  errors  of  teaching  and 


56 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  4:  11-16 


practice,  was  his  youth.  Therefore  Paul  encourages  him  to 
“  let  no  man  despise  ”  him  or  set  him  aside  on  this  account. 
After  all,  age  is  a  relative  matter.  Timothy,  in  point  of 
fact,  was  no  child.  He  had  been  traveling  as  a  companion 
of  Paul  for  some  sixteen  years,  and  must  have  been  surely 
as  old  as  sixteen  when  he  left  his  home.  However,  here  at 
Ephesus  were  teachers  and  leaders  who  may  have  been 
twice  his  age,  men  who  held  positions  of  influence  in  the 
church  and  community,  men  who  were  the  more  powerful 
because  of  the  false  asceticism  which  gave  them  a  reputa¬ 
tion  for  saintliness,  and  who  were  revered  because  of  their 
advancing  years,  yet  who  must  be  rebuked  and  publicly 
admonished  by  the  young  pastor  whom  Paul  had  sent  to 
represent  him  and  to  order  aright  the  affairs  of  the  church. 
It  is  not  strange  that  he  uses  the  words,  “Let  no  man  de¬ 
spise  thy  youth.”  Nor  was  Timothy  the  last  youthful  pas¬ 
tor  to  need  the  comfort  of  these  words.  To  act  as  the  pub¬ 
lic  mentor  and  guide  of  those  who  are  more  mature  and 
more  experienced  is  a  task  which  throws  one  back  upon  his 
Master,  and  makes  him  depend  upon  divine  grace,  and 
seek  more  earnestly  to  understand  the  inspired  Word  that 
he  may  speak  with  the  authority  which  becomes  an  am¬ 
bassador  of  Christ,  however  many  or  few  his  years. 

Two  things,  at  least,  a  young  minister  can  do ;  first,  he  can 
be  careful  as  to  his  life  and  service,  and  secondly  he  can 
remember  his  divine  commission.  Both  of  these  courses 
of  action  Paul  points  out  to  Timothy.  Instead  of  show¬ 
ing  timidity,  because  conscious  of  his  youth  or  other 
limitations,  Timothy  was  urged  to  be  “an  ensample  to 
them  that  believe,  in  word,  in  manner  of  life,  in  love,  in 
faith,  in  purity.”  Possibly  the  “word”  and  “manner  of 
life”  may  refer  to  Timothy’s  public  activity,  and  the 
“love”  and  “faith”  and  “purity”  may  define  the  virtues 
which  were  to  mold  more  particularly  his  private  conduct. 
In  any  event,  these  terms  describe  for  us  conduct  of  such 
beauty  and  charm  as  would  disarm  any  criticism  based 
upon  the  mere  fact  that  Timothy  was  young.  It  is  often  true 
to-day  that  even  a  youthful  pastor  so  commends  himself  by 
his  life  and  service  that  his  comparative  immaturity  and 
his  lack  of  experience  are  forgotten  or  overlooked.  Ad- 


I  Tim.  4:  11-16 


LIFE  AND  DUTIES 


57 


vanced  years  usually  bring  a  ripeness  which  qualifies  for  the 
highest  service,  yet  much  of  the  work  of  the  pastorate  can 
be  done  successfully  by  one  who,  whatever  his  age,  is  an 
example  to  his  flock  in  the  character  of  his  public  utterance, 
in  his  social  life,  and  by  his  manifest  love  and  faith  and 
purity. 

As  to  the  public  service  which  Timothy  is  to  render,  Paul 
specifies  the  three  elements  which  have  always  constituted 
the  main  task  of  the  preacher.  He  is  to  ‘‘  give  heed  to  read¬ 
ing,  to  exhortation,  to  teaching.”  By  the  first  of  these  three, 
Paul  means  the  public  reading  of  the  Scripture.  It  is  prob¬ 
ably  not  unkind  to  say  that  a  very  large  proportion  of 
those  who  have  succeeded  Timothy  in  the  work  of  the 
Christian  ministry  have  not  given  very  careful  attention 
to  the  solemn  responsibility  and  to  the  great  privilege  of 
such  public  reading.  Too  frequently  it  is  done  listlessly, 
thoughtlessly,  and  badly.  A  Christian  minister  should 
“give  heed”  to  this  difficult  art. 

The  second  of  these  terms,  “exhortation,”  implies  what 
we  commonly  understand  by  preaching.  It,  too,  requires 
preparation  and  thought  and  care.  It  is  associated  by  Paul 
with  “teaching.”  Possibly  the  two  are  closely  allied  in 
meaning,  but  surely  there  is  a  definite  message,  in  the  last 
word,  for  the  pastor  of  the  present  day.  He  is  really  to  be 
a  teacher,  and  this  task  is  not  to  be  confined  simply  to  the 
pulpit,  although  it  is  to  begin  there.  It  includes  all  those 
methods  whereby  the  members  of  the  flock,  both  old  and 
young,  are  not  merely  exhorted  to  the  performance  of  cer¬ 
tain  duties,  but  are  wisely  instructed  in  all  the  truths  of 
the  Christian  faith  and  are  led  out  into  various  forms  of 
unselfish  service. 

Timothy  is  further  warned  and  encouraged  by  being  re¬ 
minded  of  his  ordination.  In  spite  of  his  comparative 
youth,  he  is  to  speak  out  boldly  as  Paul  has  already  urged, 
and  he  is  to  remember  that  if  he  fails  so  to  do,  it  will  be¬ 
come  more  and  more  difficult  for  him  to  perform  his  ob¬ 
vious  task.  Therefore  Paul  adds,  “Neglect  not  the  gift 
that  is  in  thee,  which  was  given  thee  by  prophecy,  with  the 
laying  on  of  the  hands  of  the  presbytery.”  Here  Paul  re¬ 
minds  his  young  friend  of  the  experience  which  had  been 


58 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  4;  11-16 


his  when  he  had  been  solemnly  set  aside  as  a  minister  of 
Christ.  At  that  time  the  elders,  as  they  laid  upon  him  their 
hands  in  the  solemn  service  of  ordination,  had  recognized 
the  gracious  gift  for  teaching  and  for  administering  to  the 
church  which  the  Holy  Spirit  had  bestowed  upon  Timothy, 
and  which  was  in  accordance  with  the  inspired  predictions 
which  had  led  Paul  to  choose  him  as  a  companion  in  the 
ministry.  This  gracious  gift  Timothy  must  exercise. 
Therefore  Paul  continues,  “Be  diligent  in  these  things; 
give  thyself  wholly  to  them ;  that  thy  progress  may  be  man¬ 
ifest  unto  all.”  Inactivity,  even  laziness,  has  been  said 
to  be  a  besetting  sin  of  the  ministry.  If  so,  it  is  a  sin  against 
which  ministers  are  usually  on  their  guard.  It  is  a  temp¬ 
tation  which  is  most  commonly  overcome.  Nevertheless, 
it  may  at  times  be  necessary  for  young  pastors  to  be  urged 
to  show  diligence  in  their  task  and  not  to  be  held  back 
either  by  timidity  or  slothfulness  or  fear.  In  the  ministry 
one  must  show  continual  growTh.  He  will  either  progress 
or  fall  back.  Ceaseless  vigilance  is  here,  as  elsewhere,  the 
price  of  continued  and  increasing  usefulness,  and  prog¬ 
ress  is  possible  only  along  the  path  of  diligence  in  the  per¬ 
formance  of  daily  tasks. 

Thus  Paul  gives  as  a  closing  exhortation,  “Take  heed  to 
thyself,  and  to  thy  teaching.”  The  pastor  needs  to  prepare 
not  only  his  sermons,  but  also  himself.  One  who  is  giving 
constant  heed  to  his  own  character,  to  his  mental  growth, 
and  to  his  spiritual  development,  will  be  certain  to  make 
his  progress  manifest  to  all. 

If  this  is  his  habit  of  life,  as  Paul  says,  if  he  is  found  to 
“continue  in  these  things,”  he  will  then  have  the  expe¬ 
rience  which  Paul  intimates  to  Timothy — “in  doing  this 
thou  shalt  save  both  thyself  and  them  that  hear  thee” — 
for  it  is  true  that  by  fidelity  to  duty  one  does  further  secure 
his  own  salvation  and  also  that  of  those  who  are  committed 
to  his  guidance  and  care. 


I  Tim.  5:1,2  PASTORAL  OVERSIGHT 


59 


B.  PASTORAL  OVERSIGHT.  Chs.  5: 1  to  6:  2 
1.  The  Old  and  the  Young.  Ch.  5:1,2 

1  Rebuke  not  an  elder,  but  exhort  him  as  a  father;  the 
younger  men  as  brethren:  2  the  elder  women  as  mothers; 
the  younger  as  sisters,  in  all  purity. 

There  are  many  duties  which  devolve  upon  a  Christian 
minister  in  his  capacity  of  pastor  as  distinct  from  that 
of  preacher.  He  must  deal  with  the  members  of  his  flock 
as  individuals,  in  addition  to  addressing  them  at  public 
gatherings.  To  him  is  given  the  care  or  the  “  cure  ”  of  souls, 
and  this  difflcult  task  can  be  accomplished  only  by  per¬ 
sonal  contacts.  It  requires  sympathy  and  patience,  and 
wisdom  and  skill.  It  makes  one  a  more  helpful  preacher, 
but  it  secures  results  which  cannot  be  attained  by  preach¬ 
ing.  Each  age,  each  condition,  each  separate  soul  needs 
special  treatment. 

Therefore,  when  Paul,  in  earlier  portions  of  his  letter, 
has  instructed  Timothy  in  the  conduct  of  congregational 
worship,  when  he  has  urged  him  to  be  careful  and  faithful 
in  this  public  reading  of  the  Scripture,  in  exhortation  and 
instruction,  he  now  turns  to  urge  him  to  accord  to  the  per¬ 
sons  under  his  care  the  consideration  and  treatment  ap¬ 
propriate  to  the  age,  the  position,  the  need,  and  the  dignity 
of  each. 

When  he  says,  first  of  all,  “  Rebuke  not  an  elder,  but  ex¬ 
hort  him  as  a  father,”  he  does  not  refer  to  a  church  officer, 
an  “elder”  or  presbyter  or  bishop,  but  to  one  of  the  older 
men  of  his  congregation.  These  are  not  to  be  treated 
harshly  or  censured  unkindly,  but  even  when  they  are  at 
fault,  respect  for  age  must  temper  the  form  of  rebuke. 

Nor  should  the  young  men  be  sharply  reprimanded.  At 
times  severity  might  be  necessary,  but  the  spirit  of  the 
admonition  should  be  loving  and  never  vindictive  or  bitter; 
in  fact,  Timothy  was  to  treat  “the  younger  men  as 
brethren.” 


60 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  5:  3-16 


The  same  kindly,  courteous  consideration  was  to  be 
shown  to  the  women  of  the  congregation;  to  “the  elder 
women  as  mothers;  the  younger  as  sisters;”  and  here  the 
apostle  adds  significantly,  “in  all  purity,”  for  any  breach  of 
strict  propriety  may  injure  or  destroy  the  reputation  and 
influence  of  even  the  most  eloquent  preacher  or  the  most 
energetic  pastor. 


2.  Widows.  Ch.  5:  3-16 

3  Honor  widows  that  are  widows  indeed.  4  But  if  any 
widow  hath  children  or  grandchildren,  let  them  learn  first  to 
show  piety  towards  their  own  family,  and  to  requite  their 
parents :  for  this  is  acceptable  in  the  sight  of  God.  5  Now  she 
that  is  a  widow  indeed,  and  desolate,  hath  her  hope  set  on 
God,  and  continueth  in  supplications  and  prayers  night  and 
day.  6  But  she  that  giveth  herself  to  pleasure  is  dead  while 
she  liveth.  7  These  things  also  command,  that  they  may  be 
without  reproach.  8  But  if  any  provideth  not  for  his  own,  and 
specially  his  own  household,  he  hath  denied  the  faith,  and  is 
worse  than  an  unbeliever.  9  Let  none  be  enrolled  as  a  widow 
under  threescore  years  old,  having  been  the  wife  of  one  man, 
10  well  reported  of  for  good  works;  if  she  hath  brought  up 
children,  if  she  hath  used  hospitality  to  strangers,  if  she 
hath  washed  the  saints’  feet,  if  she  hath  relieved  tiie  afflicted, 
if  she  hath  diligently  followed  every  good  work.  1 1  But  younger 
widows  refuse:  for  when  they  have  waxed  wanton  against 
Christ,  they  desire  to  marry;  12  having  condemnation,  be¬ 
cause  they  have  rejected  their  first  pledge.  13  And  withal  they 
learn  also  to  be  idle,  going  about  from  house  to  house;  and 
not  only  idle,  but  tattlers  also  and  busybodies,  speaking 
things  which  they  ought  not.  14  I  desire  therefore  that  the 
younger  widows  marry,  bear  children,  rule  the  household, 
give  no  occasion  to  the  adversary  for  reviling:  15  for  already 
some  are  turned  aside  after  Satan.  16  If  any  woman  that 
believeth  hath  widows,  let  her  relieve  them,  and  let  not  the 
church  be  burdened;  that  it  may  relieve  them  that  are  widows 
indeed. 

Church  finance  offers  problems  which  every  Christian 
pastor  must  face.  No  matter  how  faithful  and  efficient  the 
officers  appointed  to  administer  the  temporal  affairs  of  a 
congregation,  the  pastor,  under  ordinary  circumstances, 
must  aid  in  the  adoption  of  wise  measures  both  for  raising 


I  Tim.  5:3-16  PASTORAL  OVERSIGHT 


61 


and  for  dispensing  the  money  necessary  to  further  the  work 
of  the  church.  This  is  particularly  true  in  reference  to  the 
funds  employed  in  relief  of  the  poor. 

Upon  this  phase  of  pastoral  oversight  Paul  casts  no  little 
light  as  he  instructs  Timothy  in  reference  to  the  care  of 
widows  who  were  dependent  upon  the  church.  He  does  not 
give  all  the  directions  needed  by  a  minister  to-day,  and  he 
includes  certain  references  which  may  not  apply  directly 
to  finance;  but  he  does  illustrate  certain  abiding  principles 
which  are  as  important  as  they  are  obvious. 

First,  the  administration  of  finances  is  as  truly  a  matter 
which  concerns  the  welfare  of  a  church  as  the  conduct  of 
public  services  or  the  appointment  of  qualified  officers. 
It  received  the  same  careful  consideration  by  an  inspired 
apostle  as  he  wrote  to  a  young  pastor  at  Ephesus. 

Second,  the  burden  of  church  support  should  be  fairly  dis¬ 
tributed,  and  those  best  able  should  assume  the  largest  share. 

Third,  every  church  should  care  for  the  poor  among  its 
own  numbers.  Usually,  no  Church  member  should  be  a 
care  to  the  community  or  dependent  upon  public  charity. 

Fourth,  the  poor  funds  should  be  distributed  with  great 
care  and  wisdom.  No  persons  should  be  supported  who  are 
able  to  care  for  themselves,  .or  who  have  relatives  upon 
whom  they  may  depend.  Only  those  who  are  worthy  as 
well  as  needy  should  be  aided  regularly.  Every  effort 
should  be  made  to  encourage  independence,  to  share  re¬ 
sponsibility,  and  to  maintain  the  good  name  of  the  church 
and  its  members. 

In  introducing  the  discussion  Paul  urges  Timothy  to 
“honor  widows  that  are  widows  indeed.”  He  has  been 
speaking  of  the  courteous  consideration  which  should  be 
given  to  all  the  various  classes  in  the  congregation,  to  men 
and  women,  to  young  and  old.  Thus  by  the  word  “  honor  ” 
he  meant  to  denote  regard  and  sympathy,  but  also  such 
respect  as  would  manifest  itself  in  material  comforts  and 
in  financial  aid  when  such  were  needed. 

By  “widows  indeed”  were  meant  those  who  were  truly 
bereft  and  helpless,  and  who  also  conducted  themselves 
with  becoming  dignity  and  propriety. 


62 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  5 :  3-16 


Those  who  had  “children  or  grandchildren”  were  hardly 
to  be  regarded  as  helpless.  These  members  of  their  own 
households  should  assume  the  burden  of  cheering  their 
loneliness  and  of  supplying  their  wants.  These  children 
should  “learn”  from  Timothy  to  regard  this  as  a  “first” 
duty,  even  taking  precedence  to  any  form  of  church  or 
charitable  work.  They  must  be  taught  that  “charity 
begins  at  home.”  This  care  for  widowed  parents  is  a  true 
way  “to  show  piety,”  for  it  is  required  by  the  Fifth  Com¬ 
mandment,  and  in  immediate  connection  with  duties  owed 
to  God ;  further,  it  is  an  act  of  proper  gratitude  in  return  for 
similar  care  already  received  in  years  of  helplessness;  it  is 
merely  what  might  be  expected  of  children,  namely,  “to 
requite  their  parents”;  it  “is  acceptable  in  the  sight  of 
God”  and  regarded  as  a  service  rendered  to  him. 

If,  however,  the  support  of  a  widow  is  to  fall  upon  the 
church,  great  care  must  be  exercised  to  determine  that  she 
is  worthy  of  this  care.  In  some  large  measure  she  must  be 
otherwise  helpless;  she  must  also  be  one  who  has  “her 
hope  set  on  God,”  and  who  lives  a  life  characterized  by 
devotion  and  prayer. 

On  the  other  hand,  a  woman  who  has  private  means,  or 
who  gives  herself  wholly  to.  pleasure  and  indulgence,  one 
indeed  who  is  spiritually  “dead,”  should  on  no  account 
receive  financial  support  from  the  church. 

Timothy  is  urged  to  impress  these  principles  upon  be¬ 
lievers — not  only  upon  widows,  but  also  upon  those  to 
whom  the  latter  might  rightfully  look  for  support.  Paul 
adds  that  if  any  one  of  the  latter  fails  in  his  obvious  duty 
to  provide  for  his  relatives  “and  especially  his  own  house¬ 
hold,  he  hath  denied  the  faith,  and  is  worse  than  an  un¬ 
believer.”  This  truth  applies  to  others  besides  widows.  It 
refers  to  the  proper  care  for  children  and  kindred.  This, 
even  the  dictates  of  reason  and  natural  affection  would 
demand.  Even  an  unconverted  pagan  would  show  such 
consideration  for  his  own  relatives. 

It  is  pitiful  to  note  how  often  this  precept  of  the  apostle 
is  abused  as  a  cloak  for  the  niggardly  support  of  Christian 
work  by  men  who  are  heaping  up  fortunes  to  be  squandered 
by  their  children.  They  declare  that  they  are  caring  for 


I  Tim.  5:3-16  PASTORAL  OVERSIGHT 


63 


their  own.  It  is  possible  to  do  this  worthy  thing  in  such  a 
selfish  way  as  to  be  no  better  than  ‘‘an  unbeliever.” 

As  to  those  who  are  enrolled  as  regular  recipients  of  aid 
from  the  church,  Paul  specifies  that  ‘‘none  be  enrolled  as 
a  widow  under  threescore  years  old.”  As  this  is  an  abso¬ 
lute  requirement,  it  is  rather  difficult  to  agree  with  the 
many  who  hold  that  Paul  is  here  describing  an  order  of 
deaconesses,  or  of  church  widows,  to  whom  were  entrusted 
certain  official  duties  in  connection  with  the  life  and  work 
of  the  congregation.  It  would  rather  appear  that  the  com¬ 
paratively  advanced  age  of  all  these  widows  who  were  to 
be  supported  by  the  church  indicates  that  they  were  sup¬ 
posed  to  be  beyond  the  years  of  active  toil  and  were  in¬ 
tended  by  the  apostle  to  be  freed  from  care  in  their  declin¬ 
ing  years. 

Yet  age  was  not  the  sole  requirement.  High  Christian 
character  was  insisted  upon  by  the  apostle  quite  as  defi¬ 
nitely.  One  who  was  enrolled  must  have  been  ‘‘the  wife  of 
one  man.”  This  can  hardly  mean  that  a  widow  who  had 
been  married  twice  was  ineligible  to  such  church  support, 
for  Paul  proceeds  at  once  to  urge  young  widows  to  marry. 
It  is  represented  as  being  altogether  in  accordance  with  the 
divine  will  that  such  second  marriages  should  take  place. 
It  is  difficult  to  suppose,  therefore,  that  one  who  in  her 
youth,  after  the  death  of  her  husband,  marries  again  should 
therefore  be  thus  penalized  so  that  if  again  bereaved,  and 
if  utterly  helpless  and  friendless,  she  could  not  be  supported 
by  the  church.  Probably  the  expression  means  a  woman 
whose  married  life  had  been  blameless  and  unblemished. 

She  must  also  have  been  a  good  mother,  in  case  she  had 
been  granted  children;  and  further,  she  must  have  been  a 
generous  hostess  as  far  as  means  and  opportunities  had 
permitted;  she  must  have  ‘‘used  hospitality  to  strangers.” 
She  must  have  ‘‘washed  the  saints’  feet,”  not  literally,  but 
as  the  phrase  must  indicate,  she  must  have  been  ready  to 
render  humble  ministries  to  her  fellow  Christians;  and  fur¬ 
ther,  she  must  have  ‘‘relieved  the  afflicted,”  giving  sym¬ 
pathy  to  all  who  were  in  distress;  and  in  short,  she  must 
have  lived  a  life  of  loving  service,  having  ‘‘diligently  fol¬ 
lowed  every  good  work.” 


64 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  5;  3-16 


On  the  other  hand,  young  widows  were  not  to  be  placed 
on  the  roll  of  those  dependent  upon  the  church  for  support, 
for  such  a  practice  would  be  dangerous  both  for  them  and 
for  the  good  name  of  the  church.  Because  of  their  very 
youth,  they  might  feel  the  restraints  of  a  life  of  such  sanc¬ 
tity  and  seriousness  as  widows  supported  by  the  church 
were  apparently  supposed  to  lead,  and  they  might  incur 
the  charge  of  unfaithfulness  to  Christ,  or  at  least,  as  these 
words  of  Paul  are  more  commonly  understood,  they  would 
by  their  marriage  break  the  pledge  made  when  they  were 
placed  upon  the  roll  of  dependent  widows.  Further,  even 
though  unmarried,  the  fact  that  they  were  being  supported 
without  working  while-young  and  full  of  vigor,  would  place 
them  in  danger  of  becoming  idle  gossipers,  meddlesome  and 
reckless  in  speech.  Paul  therefore  earnestly  advises  “that 
the  younger  widows  marry,  bear  children,  rule  the  house¬ 
hold,  give  no  occasion  to  the  adversary  for  reviling.”  By  the 
“adversary”  Paul  probably  means  the  unbeliever  who 
might  be  eager  to  spread  an  evil  report  of  a  professing 
Christian;  but  Paul  warns  young  widows  of  a  similar  and 
more  terrible  Adversary,  and  shows  that  his  fears  are  not 
unfounded  and  his  advice  not  unnecessary,  when  he  adds 
that  some  have  already  left  the  Christian  life  and  “  turned 
aside  after  Satan.” 

In  conclusion  Paul  refers  again  to  the  necessity  of  re¬ 
lieving  the  church  from  the  care  of  those  who  have  relatives 
on  whom  they  might  depend.  He  widens  the  principle, 
however,  and  relieves  it  from  possible  misunderstanding. 
Not  only  are  men  to  care  for  widowed  mothers  and  grand¬ 
mothers,  as  an  earlier  sentence  has  required,  but  women, 
also,  must  do  everything  in  their  power  to  support  needy 
relatives  that  the  burden  may  not  fall  upon  the  church. 
“  If  any  woman  that  believeth  hath  widows,  let  her  relieve 
them,  and  let  not  the  church  be  burdened.”  There  will 
always  be  a  great  demand  upon  the  church  for  relief  and 
aid;  this  must  be  given  gladly  and  liberally.  Yet  for  this 
very  reason  it  must  be  given  carefully  and  wisely,  in  order 
that  the  funds  may  suffice  to  aid  those  who  are  most  truly 
in  need.  Thus  can  the  good  name  of  the  church  be  main- 


I  Tim.  5: 17-25  PASTORAL  OVERSIGHT 


65 


tained;  thus  can  Christ  be  served  in  the  persons  of  those 
who  belong  to  him  and  whose  hope  is  in  him. 

3.  Elders.  Ch.  5:17-25 

17  Let  the  elders  that  rule  well  be  counted  worthy  of  double 
honor,  especially  those  who  labor  in  the  word  and  in  teaching. 
18  For  the  scripture  saith,  Thou  shalt  not  muzzle  the  ox  when 
he  treadeth  out  the  com.  And,  The  laborer  is  worthy  of  his 
hire.  19  Against  an  elder  receive  not  an  accusation,  except 
at  the  mouth  of  two  or  three  witnesses.  20  Them  that  sin 
reprove  in  the  sight  of  all,  that  the  rest  also  may  be  in  fear. 
211  charge  thee  in  the  sight  of  God,  and  Christ  Jesus,  and  the 
elect  angels,  that  thou  observe  these  things  without  prejudice, 
doing  nothing  by  partiality.  22  Lay  hands  hastily  on  no  man, 
neither  be  partaker  of  other  men’s  sins:  keep  thyself  pure. 
23  Be  no  longer  a  drinker  of  water,  but  use  a  little  wine  for 
thy  stomach’s  sake  and  thine  often  infirmities.  24  Some  men’s 
sins  are  evident,  going  before  unto  judgment;  and  some  men 
also  they  follow  after.  25  In  like  manner  also  there  are  good 
works  that  are  evident;  and  such  as  are  otherwise  cannot  be 
hid. 

Much  of  the  success  or  failure  attending  the  work  of  a 
pastor  will  be  due  to  the  officers  of  the  particular  church 
he  serves.  These  men  can  make  or  mar  his  ministry.  The 
high  qualifications  for  such  official  positions  were  set  forth 
in  the  third  chapter  of  this  epistle.  Paul  here  turns  to  con¬ 
sider  the  relation  which  Timothy  sustains  to  the  chief 
order  of  these  officers,  namely  the  “elders”;  and  he  refers 
specifically  to  their  remuneration,  their  discipline,  and  the 
necessity  of  carefully  ascertaining  their  worthy  character 
before  setting  them  aside  for  their  sacred  tasks. 

It  is  true  that  wide  differences  of  opinion  exist  as  to 
the  exact  nature  of  the  “elders”  or  “presbyters,”  just  as 
there  is  even  wider  divergence  in  practice  among  modern 
churches  as  to  the  duties  assigned  to  those  officers  who 
more  or  less  exactly  correspond  to  these  ministers  of  the 
primitive  Church.  It  is  commonly  supposed,  however, 
that  they  were  the  spiritual  rulers  of  the  local  church,  and 
that  while  the  duties  of  oversight  were  common  to  all,  some 
of  them  served  in  addition  as  preachers  and  teachers,  and 
that  is  the  meaning  of  Paul  as  he  here  directs  Timothy, 


66 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  5:  17-25 


“Let  the  elders  that  rule  well  be  counted  worthy  of  double 
honor,  especially  those  who  labor  in  the  word  and  in  teach¬ 
ing.”  That  is,  there  was  one  office  but  two  functions;  all 
elders  ruled,  that  was  their  essential  duty;  some  also  exer¬ 
cised  the  gift  of  public  instruction.  All  who  ruled  faithfully 
and  well,  particularly  if  they  rendered  the  additional  serv¬ 
ice  of  preaching,  were  to  be  “counted  worthy  of  double 
honor.”  The  last  word  indicates  not  merely  the  high  re¬ 
spect  and  deference  to  be  shown  them,  but  also  the  stipend 
which  they  were  to  receive.  This  financial  remuneration 
was  to  be  proportioned  to  fidelity  and  the  amount  of  time 
devoted  to  official  duties. 

The  principle  was  enforced  by  a  quotation  from  the  Old 
Testament:  “Thou  shalt  not  muzzle  the  ox  when  he  tread- 
eth  out  the  corn” ;  that  is,  the  ox,  when  engaged  in  thresh¬ 
ing  grain,  should  be  left  free  to  take  necessary  food ;  so,  by 
way  of  analogy,  a  minister  who  was  devoting  his  time  and 
energies  to  Christian  work  should  receive  support  from  the 
Christian  church. 

Paul  further  quotes  what  is  commonly  regarded  as  a 
popular  proverb:  “The  laborer  is  worthy  of  his  hire.”  As 
used  by  our  Lord,  this  saying  now  forms  a  part  of  inspired 
Scripture,  and  expresses  the  common  belief  of  the  Church, 
as  sanctioned  by  Paul,  that  one  who  is  engaged  in  preach¬ 
ing  the  gospel,  and  in  similar  sacred  ministry,  should 
receive  proper  remuneration  from  the  community  of 
believers. 

The  pastor  is  further  concerned  with  the  discipline  of 
these  officers.  In  fact,  church  finance,  as  illustrated  in  the 
matter  of  administering  the  poor  fund  and  securing  the 
salaries  of  ministers,  seems  to  be  of  no  greater  importance 
to  the  apostle  than  the  maintenance  of  the  good  name  of 
the  Church,  which  can  be  secured  only  by  the  rebuke  and 
punishment  of  offenders,  particularly  of  such  as  hold  high 
positions  of  responsibility  as  spiritual  rulers. 

However,  Timothy  is  cautioned  to  proceed  with  extreme 
care.  He  is  not  to  act  upon  mere  rumor.  “  Against  an  elder 
receive  not  an  accusation,  except  at  the  mouth  of  two  or 
three  witnesses.”  It  is  unwise  to  begin  a  legal  process  in- 


I  Tim.  5:  17-25  PASTORAL  OVERSIGHT 


67 


volving  serious  charges  unless  there  is  in  hand  sufficient 
evidence  to  make  conviction  practically  certain. 

On  the  other  hand,  when  the  sin  is  open  or  confessed,  or 
when  guilt  has  been  established,  then  the  rebuke  is  to  be 
publicly  administered,  or  at  least  in  the  presence  of  all  the 
church  officers,  that  others  may  be  warned  of  their  peril 
and  may  fear  to  commit  similar  offenses. 

Most  solemnly  does  Paul  charge  Timothy  to  carry  out 
these  injuctions,  and  in  every  case  to  act  without  prejudice 
or  partiality,  as  one  who  is  standing  in  the  presence  of  the 
eternal  Judge,  whose  conduct  is  known  to  his  Master,  who 
is  observed  by  the  holy  angels,  whom  Paul  calls  “elect” 
not  as  specifying  an  angelic  order,  but  as  referring  to  those 
supernatural  agents  of  God  who  have  kept  true  to  him  and 
have  been  sent  to  minister  to  the  heirs  of  salvation. 

Great  caution  is  to  be  exercised  by  Timothy  as  to  the 
men  who  are  candidates  for  this  sacred  office.  They  are 
not  to  be  ordained  unless  Timothy  is  certain  as  to  their 
qualifications  and  character:  “Lay  hands  hastily  on  no 
man.” 

The  special  reason  assigned  for  such  caution  is  the  fact 
that  one  who  has  a  part  in  appointing  to  the  ministry  un¬ 
worthy  men,  must  be  regarded  as  sharing  in  the  wrong 
such  men  subsequently  commit.  Against  such  partnership 
in  evil  Timothy  must  be  on  his  guard.  “Keep  thyself 
pure,”  writes  the  apostle,  with  a  strong  accent  on  “thy¬ 
self,”  for  in  dealing  with  the  sins  of  others,  and  in  acting  as 
a  judge  of  the  moral  character  of  others,  there  is  special 
reason  that  Timothy  should  keep  himself  honorable,  and 
upright  and  blameless. 

However,  he  is  to  be  on  his  guard  against  a  false  asceti¬ 
cism.  Either  as  an  act  of  self-denial  or  a  protest  against 
prevailing  excess,  Timothy  had  been  refraining  from  all 
use  of  wine;  therefore  Paul  advises  him  as  follows:  “ Be  no 
longer  a  drinker  of  water,  but  use  a  little  wine  for  thy 
stomach’s  sake  and  thine  often  infirmities.” 

In  view  of  the  injurious  character  of  alcoholic  drinks, 
Paul  has  been  criticized  frequently  for  his  advice.  It  should 
be  noticed,  however,  that  it  is  the  medicinal  use  of  wine 


68 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  5:  17-25 


that  Paul  proposes,  and,  that  he  regards  the  kind  of  wine 
which  Timothy  could  secure  as  calculated  to  relieve  him 
from  the  ailments  by  which  he  was  distressed.  It  would 
seem  obvious  that  the  weak  stomach  of  Timothy  should 
not  be  used  as  an  argument  that  modern  liquor  is  needed 
as  a  beverage. 

However,  if  wine  was  recommended  by  Paul  as  a  remedy 
for  sickness,  it  is  a  fair  question  whether  any  Christians  are 
right  in  teaching  that  “the  prayer  of  faith”  should  be  the 
only  recourse  for  the  cure  of  disease,  and  that  medicines 
or  other  “means”  should  not  be  employed. 

The  very  advice  which  Paul  gives  to  Timothy  seems  to 
caution  him  against  any  false  extremes,  and  to  urge  him  to 
use  his  sanctified  common  sense. 

Above  all,  these  words  of  the  apostle  bear  on  their  very 
surface  a  principle  upon  which  all  will  probably  agree, 
namely,  that  a  Christian  minister  needs  to  have  a  due  re¬ 
gard  to  maintaining  his  bodily  health.  A  pale,  weak,  ema¬ 
ciated  ascetic  is  not  the  ideal  pastor  proposed  by  Paul,  and 
while  the  Pastoral  Epistles  are  full  of  exhortations  to 
spiritual  attainments  and  excellencies,  it  is  to  the  credit  of 
the  great  apostle  that  he  does  not  feel  it  is  beneath  his 
dignity  to  advise  a  young  minister  as  to  his  diet,  and  con¬ 
cerning  the  recovery  or  maintenance  of  physical  health. 

This,  however,  is  by  way  of  parenthesis.  Timothy  is 
being  instructed  as  to  the  need  of  disciplining  men  for 
their  sins  and  of  carefully  judging  the  moral  character  of 
candidates  for  the  office  of  elder;  and  Paul  adds  a  final 
word  of  encouragement  to  assure  him  that  there  is  usually 
no  need  of  haste,  and  that  he  must  not  be  timid. 

In  the  same  way,  “there  are  good  works  that  are  evi¬ 
dent,”  so  that  in  their  light  it  is  easy  to  form  correct  im¬ 
pressions  as  to  the  character  of  the  men  who  perform  them ; 
“and  such  as  are  otherwise,”  that  is,  are  for  a  time  con¬ 
cealed,  “cannot  be  hid”  permanently;  they  are  certain  to 
be  revealed  some  day.  Thus,  in  the  case  of  worthy  men, 
our  high  estimate  of  their  characters  will  ultimately  be  con¬ 
firmed.  With  such  facts  in  mind,  it  should  not  be  regarded 
impossible  either  to  administer  discipline  or  to  choose  men 
who  are  worthy  to  fill  the  positions  of  spiritual  oversight. 


I  Tim.  6:1,2  PASTORAL  OVERSIGHT 


69 


4.  Slaves.  Ch.  6:  1,  2 

1  Let  as  many  as  are  servants  under  the  yoke  count 
their  own  masters  worthy  of  all  honor,  that  the  name  of  God 
and  the  doctrine  be  not  blasphemed.  2  And  they  that  have 
believing  masters,  let  them  not  despise  them,  because  they 
are  bret^en;  but  let  them  serve  them  the  rather,  because 
they  that  partake  of  the  benefit  are  believing  and  beloved. 
These  things  teach  and  exhort. 

In  the  days  of  the  early  Christians  the  institution  of 
slavery  was  universal  throughout  the  Roman  Empire,  and 
was  recognized  and  established  by  law.  It  gave  rise  to 
questions  of  the  most  delicate  and  difficult  character  with¬ 
in  the  membership  of  the  Church. 

Should  a  master  who  became  a  Christian  set  his  slaves 
free?  Should  a  slave  who  accepted  Christ  demand  his 
liberty?  How  should  Christian  masters  and  slaves  be  re¬ 
lated  to  one  another? 

Not  unnaturally,  therefore,  when  Paul  has  instructed 
Timothy  as  to  the  duty  of  the  pastor  toward  the  various 
classes  in  his  congregation,  he  turns  last  of  all  to  tell  him  of 
the  conduct  which  he  is  to  enjoin  upon  Christian  slaves. 

He  deals  first  with  those  who  have  unbelieving  masters. 
Such  are  not  to  be  insolent  or  unruly.  They  are  not  to  in¬ 
sist  upon  social  equality  or  political  freedom.  They  are  not 
to  foment  strife  and  revolution.  Such  lawlessness  and  vio¬ 
lence  on  the  part  of  Christians  would  bring  disgrace  upon 
the  name  of  God  and  upon  his  gospel :  “Let  as  many  as  are 
servants  under  the  yoke  count  their  own  masters  worthy  of 
all  honor,  that  the  name  of  God  and  the  doctrine  be  not 
blasphemed.” 

An  equally  great  temptation  would  confront  slaves 
when  their  masters  became  Christians.  They  would  be 
assured  of  their  equality  before  God,  and  of  their  common 
brotherhood  in  Christ.  Presuming  upon  these  relation¬ 
ships  they  might  be  inclined  to  show  toward  their  masters 
unbecoming  familiarity  and  contempt.  Therefore  Paul 
urges  Timothy  to  warn  such  as  “have  believing  masters” 
not  to  “despise  them,  because  they  are  brethren,”  but  on 
the  other  hand  to  labor  even  more  faithfully  just  because 
the  masters  who  would  profit  by  this  improved  service 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


70 


I  Tim.  6:  1,  2 


were  believers  and  beloved  and  as  such  were  worthy  of  fi¬ 
delity  and  kindly  regard. 

Thus  wisely  did  Paul  deal  with  the  problems  which  rose 
out  of  slavery,  the  monster  evil  of  his  day;  and  his  teach¬ 
ings  are  invaluable  to  the  Christian  pastor  who  seeks  light 
upon  the  most  pressing  problems  of  the  present,  namely, 
upon  those  questions  which  rise  out  of  our  modern  social 
and  industrial  and  political  order.  What  are  the  right  re¬ 
lations  between  the  white  and  the  colored  races,  between 
labor  and  capital,  between  rulers  and  subjects?  Surely 
gigantic  evils  exist,  and  cruel  injustice  seems  to  be  wrought 
into  the  very  fabric  of  our  social  order.  What  course  shall 
the  Christian  follow? 

We  may  note  that  Paul  neither  denounced  slavery  nor 
incited  revolution.  He  taught  great  principles  which 
worked  slowly  and  surely,  which  abolished  slavery  and 
made  for  political  liberty  and  social  justice.  The  modern 
minister  must  proclaim  human  brotherhood  and  equality, 
and  must  seek  to  apply  the  teachings  of  the  gospel  to  all 
human  relationship;  however,  he  is  neither  to  incite  nor  to 
countenance  violence ;  he  is  not  to  array  class  against  class, 
nor  to  imagine  that  human  welfare  will  be  advanced  by  the 
disregard  of  social  conventions  or  by  the  sudden  over¬ 
throw  of  political  institutions. 

The  social  ethics  of  Christianity  need  to  be  widely  advo¬ 
cated;  but  just  how  far  their  logical  conclusions  are  to  be 
pressed  in  any  case  must  be  determined  by  wisdom  and 
common  sense,  and  by  a  due  regard  for  the  rights  of  all 
parties  concerned.  Mutual  love  and  consideration  be¬ 
tween  man  and  man  will  make  life  happier  and  more  secure 
under  even  the  present  social  order,  and  no  order  can  pos¬ 
sibly  be  satisfactory  or  enduring  unless  there  exists  that 
spirit  of  Christian  brotherhood  'W'hich  Paul  advocated  when 
he  urged  even  slaves  to  show  toward  their  masters  fidelity 
and  respect. 


I  Tim.  6;  3-10 


FALSE  TEACHERS 


71 


IV.  Conclusion.  Ch.  6:  3-21 

A.  FALSE  TEACHERS  DENOUNCED  FOR  VANITY 
AND  AVARICE.  Ch.  6:  3-10 

3  If  any  man  teacheth  a  different  doctrine,  and  consenteth 
not  to  sound  words,  even  the  words  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
and  to  the  doctrine  which  is  according  to  godliness;  4  he  is 
puffed  up,  knowing  nothing,  but  doting  about  questionings  and 
disputes  of  words,  whereof  cometh  envy,  strife,  railings,  evil 
surmisings,  5  wranglings  of  men  corrupted  in  mind  and 
bereft  of  the  truth,  supposing  that  godliness  is  a  way  of  gain. 
6  But  godliness  with  contentment  is  great  gain:  7  for  we 
brought  nothing  into  the  world,  for  neither  can  we  carry  any¬ 
thing  out;  8  but  having  food  and  covering  we  shall  be  there¬ 
with  content.  9  But  they  that  are  minded  to  be  rich  fall  into  a 
temptation  and  a  snare  and  many  foolish  and  hurtful  lusts, 
such  as  drown  men  in  destruction  and  perdition.  10  For  the 
love  of  money  is  a  root  of  all  kinds  of  evil :  which  some  reach¬ 
ing  after  have  been  led  astray  from  the  faith,  and  have 
pierced  themselves  through  with  many  sorrows. 

In  the  remaining  portion  of  the  epistle,  Paul  reverts  to 
two  themes  on  which  he  has  laid  great  stress  in  the  earlier 
chapters,  namely,  the  necessity  of  sound  doctrine  and  of 
right  living.  While  the  main  portion  of  the  letter  has  dealt 
with  a  third  topic,  namely,  that  of  church  organization  and 
its  related  pastoral  duties,  Paul  dwells  in  this  letter,  as  in  all 
the  Pastoral  Epistles,  upon  the  duty  of  a  Christian  minis¬ 
ter  to  be  sound  in  his  teaching  and  to  furnish  in  his  own 
life  an  example  which  his  congregation  can  safely  follow. 

In  a  real  sense  these  closing  paragraphs  form  a  climax 
and  a  logical  conclusion  for  all  the  teaching  which  precedes, 
for  they  emphasize  the  great  motives  by  which  a  Christian 
minister  should  be  inspired.  In  contrast  with  the  false 
teachers  who  are  moved  by  vanity  and  love  of  money, 
Timothy  is  to  seek  for  holiness  and  to  be  inspired  by  the 
hope  of  his  Lord’s  return. 

In  referring  to  the  false  teachers,  who  were  causing  such 
trouble  to  the  church  at  Ephesus,  Paul  describes  them  as 


72  FIRST  TIMOTHY  I  Tim.  6:  3-10 

teaching  “a  different  doctrine.”  He  thus  again  suggests 
that  there  is  a  divine  standard  of  truth,  even  the  gospel 
which  has  been  revealed  through  Christ.  It  is  this  gospel 
which  Paul  further  defines  as  consisting  of  “sound  words,” 
and  further  describes  as  being  “the  words  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,”  and  further  still,  as  “the  doctrine  which  is  accord¬ 
ing  to  godliness,”  that  is,  the  doctrine  which  teaches  and 
develops  and  results  in  true  piety. 

The  first  motive  which  Paul  ascribes  to  one  who  teaches 
such  a  “different  doctrine”  is  that  of  vanity.  Paul  de¬ 
scribes  such  a  teacher  as  both  proud  and  ignorant:  “he  is 
puffed  up,  knowing  nothing.”  He  has  a  morbid  appetite 
for  idle  discussions  and  quarrels  about  words,  “doting 
about  questionings  and  disputes  of  words.”  These  here¬ 
tics  are  thus  described  as  wasting  time  in  mere  academic 
disputes.  Unfortunately  this  disease  has  never  been  con¬ 
fined  to  heretics,  and  even  the  most  orthodox  teachers 
have  been  tempted  to  wage  such  wars  of  words.  It  should 
be  remembered,  however,  that  by  the  ignorant  the  dis¬ 
cussion  of  even  vital  questions  is  frequently  regarded  as  a 
mere  battle  about  words,  as  the  consideration  of  essential 
Christian  truths  seemed  to  the  mind  of  Greek  philosophers 
to  be  of  this  futile  nature. 

As  to  such  really  empty  and  vain  disputes,  Paul  states 
that  their  only  result  will  be  “envy,  strife,  railings.”  He 
declares  that  these  feuds  characterize  “men  corrupted  in 
mind  and  bereft  of  the  truth.”  The  last  phrase  indicates 
that  the  truth  was  once  theirs,  but  it  has  been  lost.  They 
“have  disinherited  themselves.”  Their  chief  error  con¬ 
sists  in  regarding  the  profession  of  Christianity  as  a  means 
of  financial  profit,  “supposing  that  godliness  is  a  way  of 
gain.”  Paul  at  once  adds,  “But  godliness  with  content¬ 
ment  is  great  gain,”  and  here  he  lifts  the  word  “  gain”  even 
as  he  does  the  word  “godliness”  to  a  higher  sense.  He 
means  that  true  piety,  and  not  an  empty  profession  of 
faith,  is  a  W'ay  of  securing  the  very  highest  good  and  not 
mere  earthly  treasure ;  but  he  adds  a  very  significant  clause, 
the  “godliness”  which  “is  great  gain”  must  be  accom¬ 
panied  “with  contentment.”  The  last  is  a  word  of  large 
meaning.  It  denotes  independence  of  any  lot,  and  the 


I  Tim.  6:  3-10 


FALSE  TEACHERS 


73 


ability  of  finding  resources  in  oneself,  and  in  being  indiffer¬ 
ent  to  everything  else  besides.  It  does  not  indicate  mere 
satisfaction  with  what  one  possesses,  but  a  satisfaction 
wholly  disconnected  with  all  outward  circumstances.  Paul 
gives  a  reason  for  this  statement  in  the  phrase  which  fol¬ 
lows:  “for  we  brought  nothing  into  the  world,  for  neither 
can  we  carry  anything  out” ;  that  is,  nothing  the  world  can 
give  makes  any  real  addition  to  the  man  himself ;  his  real 
good  consists  in  his  moral  and  spiritual  being,  not  in  any 
wealth  or  possessions  he  may  gather  about  him.  Paul  fur¬ 
ther  adds,  “Having  food  and  covering  we  shall  be  there¬ 
with  content”;  whatever  else  may  be  granted  may  be  re¬ 
ceived  with  thanks;  it  may  be  useful  and  add  comfort.  It 
is  not,  however,  absolutely  necessary,  and  the  true  Chris¬ 
tian  will  be  satisfied  when  his  needs  are  supplied. 

Paul,  however,  is  not  praising  poverty,  nor  declaring  it  a 
crime  to  possess  property;  he  is  only  rebuking  avarice,  and 
showing  that  real  contentment  is  independent  of  either 
poverty  or  wealth. 

It  is  against  the  peril  of  avarice  that  he  proceeds  to  warn 
Timothy,  and  through  him  all  religious  teachers,  and,  in¬ 
deed,  all  the  followers  of  Christ.  “They  that  are  minded 
to  be  rich,”  that  is,  those  who  place  before  them  wealth  as 
the  chief  goal  in  life,  “fall  into  a  temptation,”  namely, 
that  of  using  wrong  means  for  accomplishing  their  ends, 
“and  a  snare,”  so  that  they  find  themselves  enmeshed  in  a 
net  of  circumstances  from  which  they  cannot  extricate 
themselves  without  the  loss  either  of  honor  or  of  money. 
Then,  as  riches  increase,  they  tend  to  develop  many  “fool¬ 
ish  and  hurtful  lusts,”  that  is,  the  desire  for  unreasonable 
and  injurious  pleasures  and  gratifications  which  overwhelm 
men  in  moral  ruin,  or,  as  Paul  declares,  “drown  men  in 
destruction  and  perdition.” 

Such  a  downward  course  of  those  who  have  yielded  to 
avarice  has  been  observed  only  too  frequently,  in  the  case 
of  men  within  as  well  as  outside  the  Church.  Paul  empha¬ 
sizes  his  warning,  however,  by  the  statement  that  “the 
love  of  money  is  a  root  of  all  kinds  of  evil.”  He  does  not 
speak  disparagingly  of  money,  for  it  may  be  an  instrument 
of  all  kinds  of  good,  but  of  the  “love  of  money,”  the  lust 


74 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  6:  11-16 


of  gold,  the  passion  for  gain,  out  of  which  evil  of  every 
kind  may  spring.  Nor  does  he  mean  that  avarice  is  the 
only  passion  out  of  which  such  deadly  fruit  may  grow,  but 
that  it  is  a  motive,  which,  if  allowed  to  take  root  in  the 
heart,  will  be  prolific  of  evils  of  every  kind. 

Then  Paul  adds  that  there  are  some  persons,  even  within 
the  number  of  professing  Christians,  who  because  of  their 
‘Teaching  after”  money  have  made  shipwreck  both  of 
their  faith  and  of  their  happiness,  they  “have  been  led 
astray  from  the  faith,  and  have  pierced  themselves  through 
with  many  sorrows.”  Just  what  these  sorrows  are,  Paul 
leaves  the  reader  to  conclude.  Evidently  he  intends  to 
suggest  the  poignant  griefs  of  one  whom  conscience  tor¬ 
ments  for  disgraceful  efforts  to  secure  wordly  gain,  or  the 
final  disillusionment  of  one  who  has  made  gold  his  god. 

B.  TIMOTHY  SOLEMNLY  EXHORTED.  Ch.  6:  11-16 

11  But  thou,  O  man  of  God,  flee  these  things;  and  follow 
after  righteousness,  godliness,  faith,  love,  patience,  meekness. 
12  Fight  the  good  fight  of  the  faith,  lay  hold  on  the  life  eternal, 
w hereunto  thou  wast  called,  and  didst  confess  the  good  con¬ 
fession  in  the  sight  of  many  witnesses.  13  I  charge  thee  in 
the  sight  of  God,  who  giveth  life  to  all  things,  and  of  Christ 
Jesus,  who  before  Pontius  Pilate  witnessed  the  good  con¬ 
fession;  14  that  thou  keep  the  commandment,  without  spot, 
without  reproach,  until  the  appearing  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ:  15  which  in  its  own  times  he  shall  show,  who  is  the 
blessed  and  only  Potentate,  the  King  of  kings,  and  Lord  of 
lords;  16  who  only  hath  immortality,  dwelling  in  light  unap¬ 
proachable  ;  whom  no  man  hath  seen,  nor  can  see :  to  whom 
be  honor  and  power  eternal.  Amen. 

The  supreme  concern  of  the  Christian  pastor  must  ever 
be  that  of  the  purity  and  sanctity  of  his  own  motives.  Thus 
when  Paul  has  warned  Timothy  against  the  vanity  and 
avarice  which  controlled  the  false  teachers  in  Ephesus,  he 
brings  his  epistle  to  a  climax  in  a  solemn  charge  to  shun 
these  evils  and  earnestly  to  seek  the  things  of  the  highest 
good,  not  to  set  his  heart  upon  selfish  and  worldly  gain,  but 
to  be  looking  for  “the  appearing  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.” 

Paul  appeals  to  Timothy  as  a  “man  of  God,”  using  a 


I  Tim.  6:  11-16  FINAL  EXHORTATION 


75 


phrase  commonly  employed  in  the  Old  Testament  to  desig¬ 
nate  a  prophet;  but  he  does  not  mean  to  describe  Timothy 
technically  as  a  Christian  minister,  but  possibly  to  remind 
him  that  he  has  been  entrusted  with  a  divine  message;  and 
the  exhortation  which  follows  is  surely  applicable  to  all 
who  are  true  servants  of  God. 

“Flee  these  things,”  that  is,  the  pride,  the  vanity,  and 
the  avarice  of  the  false  teachers.  Instead  of  their  use  of 
religion  as  a  means  of  gain,  Timothy  is  to  strive  earnestly 
for  a  character  pleasing  to  God  and  for  that  true  piety  by 
which  alone  such  a  character  can  be  produced. 

If  the  false  teachers  “have  been  led  astray  from  the 
faith  ”  by  their  love  of  money,  Timothy  is  to  maintain  that 
devotion  to  Christ  which  manifests  itself  in  deeds  of  love. 
If  they  have  been  led  into  bitterness  and  wrangling,  Tim¬ 
othy  must  manifest  patience  and  meekness. 

He  is  exhorted  to  “fight  the  good  fight  of  the  faith.” 
Here  Paul  uses  words  which  refer  to  the  ancient  Greek 
games,  and  he  pictures  the  Christian  life  as  a  “contest,” 
noble,  indeed,  in  contrast  with  the  physical  struggles  of 
the  arena,  a  contest  in  which  victory  can  be  secured  only 
by  faith  in  Christ,  and  in  which  the  prize  is  nothing  less 
than  life  eternal. 

To  the  enjoyment  of  this  life  here  and  hereafter,  Timothy 
was  “called”  at  the  time  he  accepted  Christ,  and  when  he 
confessed  “the  good  confession  in  the  sight  of  many  wit¬ 
nesses.”  From  the  reference  to  this  “good  confession” 
which  Timothy  made  in  earlier  days,  Paul  passes  naturally 
to  exhort  Timothy  to  continue  steadfast  in  the  present 
trials  through  which  he  is  passing  and  in  which  he  is  sur¬ 
rounded  by  witnesses  whose  real  but  unseen  presence  will 
strengthen  him  to  be  faithful  and  true. 

Paul  charges  Timothy  “in  the  sight  of  God,  who  giveth 
life  to  all  things,”  that  is,  in  the  sight  of  the  One  who  is  the 
Source  or  Preserver  of  all  beings,  and  who  will  therefore 
protect  and  deliver  Timothy,  however  great  the  perils 
which  may  surround  him. 

He  charges  him  further  in  the  presence  of  “Christ  Jesus, 
who  before  Pontius  Pilate  witnessed  the  good  confession,” 
that  Timothy,  also,  may  be  fearless  and  uncompromising 


76 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  6:  11-16 


in  his  witness  to  the  truth.  The  exact  “charge,”  however, 
Paul  now  specifies:  “That  thou  keep  the  commandment 
without  spot,  without  reproach,  until  the  appearing  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.”  By  “the  commandment”  Paul  means 
the  whole  moral  content  of  the  gospel.  This  Timothy  must 
keep  “without  spot,  without  reproach,”  by  his  own  ob¬ 
servance  of  it  in  his  life  and  conduct,  quite  as  much  as  by 
his  open  proclamation  of  its  truth. 

In  a  strict  sense  nothing  can  affect  the  “commandment” ; 
it  will  always  be  “without  spot,  without  reproach”;  yet, 
practically,  the  divine  message  may  suffer  and  be  brought 
into  disrepute  by  the  faulty  lives  of  Christian  ministers. 
Those  who  preach  the  gospel  must  adorn  the  doctrine  by 
their  lives.  Thus,  while  the  terms  “spotless”  and  “blame¬ 
less”  literally  define  “the  commandment,”  in  reality  it  is 
Timothy  who  is  to  be  “unspotted”  and  “free  from  re¬ 
proach,”  lest  the  message  he  delivers  may  be  disregarded 
and  despised. 

This  unblemished  life  is  to  be  lived,  “the  commandment” 
is  to  be  kept,  “until  the  appearing  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.”  This  is  a  clear  reference  to  the  return  of  Christ, 
or  the  Second  Advent,  by  which  is  meant  no  mere  spiritual 
influence  upon  men,  nor  the  moral  development  of  society, 
but  an  actual,  visible,  personal  manifestation,  the  glorious 
“appearing  of  our  Lord.” 

Paul  does  not  mean,  however,  that  Timothy  of  necessity 
will  live  until  that  day;  but  this  event  is  to  be  regarded  as 
one  which  might  occur  in  his  lifetime,  and  is  ever  to  be 
regarded  as  an  inspiring  hope.  Paul  never  affirms  that  the 
event  is  near.  In  his  earliest  letters  he  specifically  taught 
that  an  apostasy  would  first  develop  and  a  “man  of  sin” 
appear.  II  Thess.  2  :  3.  How  long  the  delay  may  be  is 
never  foretold.  As  stated  here,  this  return  of  Christ  was  to 
be  “in  its  own  times,”  known  to  God  alone. 

It  was  for  Timothy,  as  it  is  the  privilege  of  every  subse¬ 
quent  generation  of  believers,  to  find  in  the  hope  of  “the 
appearing  of  our  Lord”  an  incentive  to  fidelity  in  service 
and  to  purity  of  life. 

The  solemn  exhortation  now  melts  into  the  music  of  a 
glorious  doxology.  He  who  in  due  season  is  to  bring  to 


I  Tim.  6:  11-16  FINAL  EXHORTATION 


.77 


pass  the  return  of  Christ  is  described  as  “the  blessed  and 
only  Potentate,”  the  One  who  enjoys  perfect  bliss  and 
absolute  sovereignty,  “King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords.” 
He  “only  hath  immortality,”  essential  and  underived, 
“dwelling  in  light  unapproachable”  because  of  its  bril¬ 
liance  and  splendor,  “whom  no  man  hath  seen  nor  can  see,” 
as  his  glory  is  revealed  to  men  only  in  the  face  of  Jesus 
Christ.  To  this  blessed,  sovereign,  majestic,  everlasting, 
invisible  God,  is  ascribed  “honor  and  power  eternal.” 

Amidst  all  the  dark  and  abounding  idolatries  of  earth, 
the  Christian  Church  should  sound  out  more  widely  the 
glad,  good  news  embodied  in  this  majestic  hymn  of  praise 
to  the  one  true  and  living  God. 


78 


FIRST  TIMOTHY 


I  Tim.  6:  17-19 


C.  POSTSCRIPT.  Ch.  6:  17-19 
1.  An  Admonition  to  the  Rich.  Ch.  6  :  17-19 

17  Charge  them  that  are  rich  in  this  present  world,  that 
they  be  not  highminded,  nor  have  their  hope  set  on  the  im- 
certainty  of  riches,  but  on  God,  who  giveth  us  richly  all 
things  to  enjoy;  18  that  they  do  good,  that  they  be  rich  in 
good  works,  that  they  be  ready  to  distribute,  wiUing  to  com¬ 
municate;  19  laying  up  in  store  for  themselves  a  good  foun¬ 
dation  against  the  time  to  come,  that  they  may  lay  hold  on  the 
life  which  is  life  indeed. 

The  modern  minister  needs  to  be  on  his  guard  lest  he 
may  deal  unwisely  with  the  problems  related  to  wealth. 
The  present  social  and  industrial  order  does  involve  in¬ 
justice  and  distressing  inequalities.  Nevertheless,  a  Chris¬ 
tian  leader  must  be  careful  not  to  deny  the  right  of  private 
property  or  to  intimate  that  a  man  is  sinful  or  dangerous 
because  he  is  rich. 

Neither  Christ  nor  Paul  ever  condemned  rich  men  be¬ 
cause  they  were  rich,  but  only  because  they  put  their  trust 
in  wealth  or  failed  to  use  it  aright.  Thus,  when  Paul  is 
writing  the  closing  paragraphs  of  this  letter,  he  pauses  to 
give  an  admonition  to  the  rich.  He  has,  in  this  very  chap¬ 
ter,  given  a  solemn  warning  against  avarice,  and  particu¬ 
larly  against  the  avarice  of  religious  teachers;  here  he  is 
making  an  advance  upon  his  thought,  for  he  is  addressing 
wealthy  Christians,  and  is  warning  them  against  putting 
a  false  confidence  in  their  riches,  and  is  urging  them  to 
make  a  wise  use  of  their  wealth. 

When  he  tells  Timothy  to  “charge  them  that  are  rich  in 
this  present  world,  that  they  be  not  highminded,”  he  is 
referring  to  members  of  the  Church.  Evidently  there  were 
among  them  men  of  wealth,  owners  of  slaves,  v.  2,  pos¬ 
sessors  of  large  means.  This  is  the  sense  of  the  phrase, 
“rich  in  this  present  world”;  the  contrast  is  not  between 
spiritual  and  material  riches,  but  between  the  rich  and  the 
poor  in  worldly  goods.  Those  who  are  possessors  of  ma- 


I  Tim.  6:  20,  21a 


POSTSCRIPT 


79 


terial  goods  are  not  urged  to  sell  them  or  to  give  them  up, 
but  are  charged  not  to  be  “highminded,”  that  is,  proud, 
for  pride  of  purse  is  “not  merely  vulgar,  it  is  sinful”  ,  nor 
are  they  to  trust  in  riches,  or  to  set  their  hopes  upon  them, 
for  these  so  often  take  wings  and  fly  away,  as  Paul  implies 
by  his  expression,  “the  uncertainty  of  riches,”  which  is  a 
strong  way  of  saying  “riches,  which  are  uncertain.” 

In  contrast  to  such  an  insecure  foundation  for  our  hopes 
and  confidence,  Paul  declares  that  our  trust  is  to  be  in 
God  “who  giveth  us  richly  all  things  to  enjoy.”  Riches 
are  therefore  a  real  good,  if  rightly  used.  For  they  are  given 
by  God,  who  is  the  Giver  of  every  good  and  perfect  gift, 
and  they  are  intended  not  only  to  be  possessed  but  to  be 
enjoyed. 

However,  rightful  ownership  and  real  enjoyment  must 
be  united  with  a  proper  use  of  wealth.  Therefore,  Timothy 
is  to  charge  his  wealthy  parishioners  to  “do  good,”  to  be 
“  rich  in  good  works,”  which,  after  all,  constitute  the  truest 
wealth,  “ready  to  distribute,”  that  is,  to  share  their 
blessings  with  others.  The  result  of  such  a  generous,  un¬ 
selfish,  helpful  use  of  wealth  will  be  the  “laying  up  in 
store  for  themselves  a  good  foundation  against  the  time  to 
come,”  that  is,  this  true  garnering  of  the  wealth  of  good 
deeds  will  supply  for  them  a  solid  foundation  for  the  future, 
and  will  enable  them  to  grasp  and  enjoy  the  prize  of  eternal 
life,  or  to  “lay  hold  on  the  life  which  is  life  indeed.”  While 
some  of  these  phrases  are  so  condensed  and  figurative  as 
to  allow  some  latitude  of  interpretation,  nevertheless  the 
main  meaning  is  plain  and  accords  perfectly  with  the 
teaching  of  our  Master  as  to  the  stewardship  of  wealth, 
its  uncertain  tenure,  and  its  possible  use  to  “lay  up  .  .  . 
treasures  in  heaven.” 

2.  A  Final  Charge  to  Timothy.  Ch.  6:  20,  21a 

20  O  Timothy,  guard  that  which  is  committed  unto  thee, 
turning  away  from  the  profane  babblings  and  oppositions  of  the 
knowledge  which  is  falsely  so  called:  21  which  some  profess¬ 
ing  have  erred  concerning  the  faith. 

It  has  been  noted  properly  that  this  last  charge  to  Tim¬ 
othy  is  in  large  measure  a  summary  of  the  whole  epistle. 


80 


FIRST  TIMOTHY  I  Tim.  6:  20,  21a 


It  is  a  solemn  reminder  that  the  gospel  must  be  guarded 
against  the  assaults  of  false  teachers.  It  intimates  to  the 
Christian  minister  that  the  truth  committed  to  his  trust, 
while  continually  in  peril  of  being  corrupted  by  proud  ad¬ 
vocates  of  heresy,  must  ever  be  preserved  with  fidelity 
and  boldness,  even  as  it  must  be  proclaimed  with  love. 

This  last  mention  of  Timothy,  by  name,  gives  a  solemn 
tone  to  the  warning,  and  makes  it  more  emphatic,  as  a 
personal  address.  “O  Timothy,  guard  that  which  is  com¬ 
mitted  unto  thee.”  This  “deposit,”  to  quote  the  exact 
word  employed  by  Paul,  this  “which  is  committed”  to 
Timothy,  can  be  nothing  else  than  the  Christian  creed, 
the  faith  of  the  Church,  the  gospel  of  Christ.  It  is  likened 
to  a  treasure  entrusted  to  a  bank  for  safe-keeping. 

As  an  ancient  writer  maintained,  this  gospel  message  is 
one  which  has  been  “committed”  to  the  ministers  of  the 
Church,  not  invented  by  them;  which  they  have  received, 
not  which  they  have  devised ;  a  thing  not  of  wit  but  of  learn¬ 
ing;  not  of  private  assumption  but  of  public  tradition;  a 
thing  brought  to  them,  not  brought  forth  of  them,  wherein 
they  must  be  not  authors  but  keepers,  not  founders  but  ob¬ 
servers,  not  leaders  but  followers.  “Wherefore,”  he  con¬ 
cludes,  as  he  addresses  a  particular  pastor,  “in  such  sort 
deliver  the  same  things  which  thou  has  learnt,  that  albeit 
thou  teachest  after  a  new  manner,  yet  thou  never  teach 
new  things.” 

Therefore  Timothy  is  to  “guard”  the  apostolic  gospel 
as  a  sacred  trust  which  he  has  received  from  Paul,  which 
he  must  keep  safe  and  intact,  and  which  he  must  transmit 
to  the  church  at  Ephesus,  and  through  these  believers  to 
those  who  shall  come  after. 

In  order  that  he  may  succeed  in  this  difficult  task,  he 
must  turn  away  from  the  irreverent  and  empty  babblings 
and  contradictions  of  what  is  falsely  called  “knowledge.” 
Paul  refers  to  the  heresies  already  rife  in  the  Ephesian 
church,  which  consisted  largely  of  puerile  and  profitless 
intellectual  subtleties  and  allegorical  interpretations  of  the 
Old  Testament  law,  and  were  definitely  contrasted  with 
the  practical  morality  of  the  gospel  as  proclaimed  by  Paul. 
He  is  insisting  here  that  a  professed  knowledge  of  God,  on 


I  Tim.  6:  20,  21b 


POSTSCRIPT 


81 


the  part  of  those  who  do  not  love  him  and  submit  to  his 
will,  is  really  no  “knowledge”  at  all.  Such  mere  idle 
speculation  has  no  real  power;  and  therefore  Paul  adds 
that  some  who  professed  such  knowledge  “have  erred,” 
or  “missed  the  mark,”  “concerning  the  faith.”  They  have 
been  aiming  in  the  wrong  direction.  Real  religion  is  not  a 
matter  of  logical  subtleties  but  the  application  of  truth 
to  life. 

3.  Benediction.  Ch.  6:21b 

Grace  be  with  you. 

The  benediction,  “Grace  be  with  you,”  is  a  character¬ 
istic  ending  for  the  letters  of  Paul.  The  “grace”  he  invokes 
is  elsewhere  expressed  as  “the  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ”;  it  is  that  unmerited  favor  upon  which  all  be¬ 
lievers  need  to  rely,  and  especially  those  who  are  serving 
as  pastors  of  the  flock. 

The  word  “you”  is  plural,  and,  while  in  Greek  corre¬ 
spondence  thiswas  often  used  in  reference  toan  individual,  it 
is  commonly  supposed  that  Paul  had  in  mind  here  the 
whole  church  at  Ephesus,  and  thus  indicates  that  these 
Pastoral  Epistles  were  not  intended  to  bear  merely  per¬ 
sonal  instructions  to  the  pastor  addressed,  but  guidance 
for  the  whole  society  of  believers.  Thus,  to-day,  while  the 
first  message  of  these  letters  may  come  to  Christian  pastors, 
no  member  of  the  flock  can  read  them  thoughtfully  and 
prayerfully  without  finding  guidance  and  strength,  and  a 
new  share  in  the  grace  of  Christ. 


THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO 
TIMOTHY 


The  Second  Epistle  written  by  the  Apostle  Paul  to 
Timothy  is  the  most  personal  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles. 
Possibly  no  other  of  the  New  Testament  letters  makes  so 
tender  and  so  pathetic  an  appeal.  Every  paragraph  is 
suffused  with  emotion,  every  sentence  throbs  with  the 
pulse  beats  of  a  human  heart.  Paul,  the  dauntless  mis¬ 
sionary  hero,  the  founder  of  the  Church  in  Asia  Minor  and 
in  Europe,  is  now  an  aged  prisoner  in  Rome,  suffering, 
deserted,  despised,  condemned,  and  soon  to  be  led  forth 
to  a  cruel  death.  In  his  previous  captivity  he  had  been 
allowed  to  dwell  in  his  own  hired  house,  to  converse  freely 
with  his  friends,  and  to  direct  his  wide  missionary  work; 
now  he  is  chained  in  a  dark  dungeon,  he  is  distressed  with 
the  cold,  he  is  absolutely  alone  save  for  one  faithful  friend, 
Luke,  “the  beloved  physician,”  to  whom,  probably,  he  is 
dictating  this  moving  message  of  farewell. 

Yet  in  another  sense  Paul  is  not  alone.  To  the  eye  of 
imagination  his  prison  cell  is  crowded  with  a  throng  of 
saints  and  heroes  and  sufferers  of  all  the  ages  down  to  the 
present  day.  The  number  is  almost  countless  of  those  who 
know  what  it  is  to  suffer  imprisonment,  or  to  be  racked 
with  pain,  or  to  be  discouraged  and  lonely  and  shadowed  by 
the  approach  of  death;  but  their  faces  grow  bright  with 
cheer  and  their  hearts  bound  with  new  hope  and  their 
fears  are  dissolved  as  they  hear  the  apostle  speaking,  not 
to  Luke  alone  but  to  all  who  are  in  distress  and  who  in 
the  darkness  put  their  trust  in  Christ;  and  the  gloom  dis¬ 
appears  and  the  scene  is  flooded  with  glory  as  Paul  utters 
his  triumphant  words:  “I  know  him  whom  I  have  be¬ 
lieved.  ...  I  have  fought  the  good  fight,  I  have  finished 
the  course,  I  have  kept  the  faith :  henceforth  there  is  laid 
up  for  me  the  crown  of  righteousness,  which  the  Lord,  the 
righteous  judge,  shall  give  to  me  at  that  day.  .  .  .  The 
Lord  will  deliver  me  from  every  evil  work,  and  will  save 
me  unto  his  heavenly  kingdom.” 

82 


THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO  TIMOTHY  83 


The  immediate  purpose  of  the  letter  is  to  summon  to 
his  side  Timothy,  his  beloved  friend  and  the  companion 
of  his  long  missionary  journeys.  In  the  darkness  and 
dreariness  of  his  imprisonment,  Paul  not  unnaturally 
longed  for  the  comforting  fellowship  of  one  who  was  as 
dear  to  him  as  his  own  soul,  his  beloved,  and  faithful  child 
in  the  Lord,  one  who  so  long  had  served  with  him  as  a  son 
with  a  father. 

For  Timothy,  as  well  as  for  Paul,  these  are  times  of 
trouble  and  testing,  of  deep  anxiety,  even  of  discourage¬ 
ment  and  of  fear.  He  has  been  appointed  by  Paul  as  the 
superintending  pastor  of  the  great  mission  at  Ephesus. 
By  nature  he  is  timid  and  sensitive,  and  he  is  painfully 
conscious  that  he  is  unequal  to  the  difficult  work  to  which 
he  has  been  sent.  The  days  are  growing  even  darker;  not 
only  are  there  false  teachers  within  the  Church  who  are 
seeking  to  corrupt  its  doctrine,  but  from  without,  perse¬ 
cutors  and  bitter  enemies  are  threatening  the  very  ex¬ 
istence  of  the  infant  society.  The  cruelties  of  Nero  are  at 
their  height.  The  heartless  emperor  has  set  fire  to  Rome 
and  has  turned  the  popular  suspicion  and  anger  against  the 
Christians  who  are  everywhere  spoken  against,  suspected, 
hated,  and  oppressed.  At  such  a  time  we  can  imagine 
how  Timothy  would  rejoice  if  he  could  have  the  presence 
and  counsel  and  encouragement  of  Paul;  but  on  the  con¬ 
trary  he  learns  that  the  friend  he  adores  has  been  seized 
by  enemies  and  imprisoned  and  is  about  to  die. 

However,  we  may  imagine  what  comfort  and  new 
strength  come  to  Timothy  as  he  reads  the  promises  and 
the  affectionate  exhortations  of  this  little  letter.  We  can 
also  realize  in  part  how  far  this  letter  now  has  come  and 
to  how  many  pastors  distressed  by  distracting  cares,  to 
how  many  missionaries  surrounded  by  unsympathetic 
multitudes  and  sinking  beneath  crushing  burdens,  to  how 
many  other  faithful  Christians  torn  by  anxiety  for  the 
welfare  of  their  work,  have  these  chapters  come  to  dispel 
the  clouds,  to  strengthen  faith,  to  stimulate  zeal,  to  give 
peace  and  confidence  in  hours  of  trial  and  even  in  the  face 
of  death.  To  them,  also,  as  well  as  to  Timothy,  comes  the 


84  THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO  TIMOTHY 


exhortation  to  suffer  hardship  as  good  soldiers  of  Christ 
and  the  promise  that  “  if  we  endure,  we  shall  also  reign  with 
him.” 

However,  as  we  read  this  letter,  it  becomes  evident  that 
Paul  is  not  concerned  for  himself  alone,  nor  yet  for  Tim¬ 
othy,  his  beloved  friend,  but  for  the  Christian  Church 
which  is  so  dear  to  their  hearts  and  for  which  Paul  was 
ready  to  pour  out  his  life.  The  apostle  feels  deep  anxiety 
for  its  pure  doctrine  and  for  its  consistent  life,  and  there¬ 
fore  as  he  writes  he  urges  Timothy  to  perfect  its  organiza¬ 
tion  and  to  commit  its  beliefs  “to  faithful  men,  who  shall 
be  able  to  teach  others  also,”  and  this  with  a  view  to  with¬ 
standing  the  influences  of  false  teachers  whose  corrupt 
doctrines  are  resulting  in  unholy  lives  and  are  indicating 
that  for  the  Church  even  more  grievous  times  are  to  come. 

Therefore,  to  all  who  love  the  Church  of  Christ,  the 
message  of  this  epistle  will  be  precious,  for  it  contains  the 
last  will  and  testament  of  the  apostle ;  it  conveys  his  fare¬ 
well  warning  and  advice.  It  indicates  the  need  of  appoint¬ 
ing,  as  official  witnesses,  men  who  proclaim  a  pure  gospel, 
in  order  that  consistent  character  may  be  developed  and 
that  the  coming  and  Kingdom  of  Christ  may  be  hastened. 
“The  substance  of  the  epistle  is  just  this:  Be  not  ashamed; 
be  brave,  be  faithful  to  the  truth  as  I  have  been.  Oppose 
the  false  teachers.  Come  to  me,  for  I  am  alone  and  soon 
to  die.”  The  exhortations  are  at  once  too  informal,  too 
diverse,  and  too  fervent  to  admit  of  any  rigid  classification, 
but  the  following  outline  may  aid  somewhat  in  appreciating 
the  message  of  this  the  last  letter  which  has  come  from  the 
Apostle  Paul: 

I.  Introduction.  II  Tim.  1  :  1-5. 

A.  Salutation.  Ch.  1  :  1,  2. 

B. ’  Thanksgiving.  Ch.  1  :  3-5. 

II.  Exhortations  to  Steadfastness  in  Service.  Chs.  1  :  6 

to  2  :  13. 

A.  To  Zeal  and  Courage:  The  Example  of  Paul.  Ch. 

1  :  6-12. 

B.  To  Fidelity  and  Loyalty:  The  Example  of  One- 

siphorus.  Ch.  1  :  13-18. 


THE  SECOND  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO  TIMOTHY  85 


C.  To  Transmit  the  Truth,  and  to  Endure  Hardship 
for  Its  Sake.  Ch.  2  :  1-13. 

III.  Exhortations  to  Sound  Doctrine.  Chs.  2  :  14  to  4  :  8. 

A.  The  Evil  Influence  of  False  Teaching.  Ch.  2:14-26. 

B.  The  Difficult  Days  Ahead.  Ch.  3. 

C.  Paul’s  Approaching  Death.  Ch.  4  :  1-8. 

IV.  Conclusion.  Ch.  4  :  9-22. 

A.  Personal  Matters.  Ch.  4  :  9-18. 

B.  Salutation  and  Benediction.  Ch.  4  :  19-22. 


86 


SECOND  TIMOTHY 


II  Tim.  1:  1,  2 


1.  Introduction.  II  Tim.  1  :  1-5 

A.  SALUTATION.  Ch.  1:  1,  2 

1  Paul,  an  apostle  of  Christ  Jesus  through  the  will  of  God, 
according  to  the  promise  of  the  life  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus, 
2  to  Timothy,  my  beloved  child:  Grace,  mercy,  peace,  from 
God  the  Father  and  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord. 

Thus  for  the  last  time  Paul  addresses  his  dear  young 
friend,  Timothy;  thus  he  begins  that  matchless  farewell 
which  has  cheered  countless  readers  in  all  ages  of  the 
Christian  Church. 

To  us  of  the  present  day,  and  in  the  Western  world, 
there  may  seem  to  be  something  of  formality  and  of  cold¬ 
ness  in  a  greeting  which  the  writer  begins  with  the  mention 
of  his  own  name.  We  remember,  however,  that  this  was  as 
fixed  a  custom  in  the  days  of  Paul  as  it  is  for  us  to  place 
signatures  at  the  close  of  our  letters.  No  name  of  more 
thrilling  significance  could  have  been  written.  Its  mere 
mention  summons  before  us  vividly  one  of  the  most  strik¬ 
ing  personalities  in  the  history  of  the  world,  a  master  mind, 
a  soul  of  almost  infinite  capacity  for  joy  and  grief,  for 
hope  and  pain,  for  friendship  and  for  faith. 

So  well  do  we  know  him,  so  familiar  are  we  with  the  fact 
that  he  is  now  opening  his  last  message,  that  we  instinc¬ 
tively  feel  he  is  here  calling  us  to  listen  to  his  words. 

There  is  something  official  in  the  title  by  which  he  de¬ 
scribes  himself:  “Paul,  an  apostle”;  he  intends  to  convey 
an  intimation  of  authority;  he  is  about  to  write  a  pastoral 
epistle — not  a  personal  note,  but  a  letter  to  a  minister  who 
is  in  charge  of  an  important  church,  who  needs  encourage¬ 
ment  and  counsel  and,  also,  a  deepening  conviction  of  the 
dignity  and  importance  of  his  task.  However,  the  personal 
element  in  the  letter  is  to  be  supreme,  and  this  is  fore¬ 
shadowed  by  the  phrase  which  Paul  adds  to  the  name  of 
Timothy,  to  whom  he  is  writing.  He  calls  him  his  “beloved 
child.”  It  is  this  phrase  which  gives  a  special  note  of 


II  Tim.  1:1,2 


SALUTATION 


87 


tenderness  to  the  salutation  and  prepares  us  for  the  mes¬ 
sages  which  follcw,  as  Paul  pours  out  his  whole  heart  to 
the  companion  who  had  not  only  shared  his  greatest  trials 
and  triumphs,  but  also  long  had  enjoyed  such  affection  as 
a  father  bestows  upon  a  son;  and  now  Timothy  is  being 
summoned  to  the  side  of  the  great  apostle,  to  whom  he 
owes  his  spiritual  life,  that  he  may  bring  comfort  and  cheer 
and  receive  from  him  a  tender  last  farewell. 

The  name,  however,  which  makes  this  salutation  differ 
from  those  of  most  letters,  ancient  and  modern,  and  which 
gives  it  at  once  its  significance  and  its  dignity,  is  that 
neither  of  Paul  nor  of  Timothy  but  of  “Christ  Jesus.” 
We  note  the  order  of  the  words.  Other  apostles  speak  of 
“Jesus  Christ  ” ;  Paul  alone,  and  usually,  speaks  of  ‘  ‘  Christ 
Jesus.”  Just  what  this  difference  implies,  it  may  be  unwise 
to  insist.  Originally  the  word  “Jesus  ”  was  a  personal  name, 
and  “Christ”  an  official  title;  in  the  course  of  time,  these 
terms  were  interchanged  rather  freely;  Jesus  had  proved 
to  be  the  Christ,  and  the  Christ  had  been  known  among 
men  as  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  However,  while  the  other 
apostles  had  known  their  Master  first  as  a  man  and  later 
as  a  Messiah,  it  may  be  that  for  this  reason  they  called 
him  Jesus  Christ,  while  Paul,  whose  first  vision  was  of  the 
glorified  Lord,  always  thought  of  him  as  the  divine  Christ 
who  had  borne  the  human  name  of  Jesus,  and  whom  Paul 
loved  and  adored  as  Christ  Jesus. 

Whichever  term  we  may  employ,  the  lesson  for  us  is 
plain:  that  we  should  never  regard  our  Master  merely  as 
a  man,  but,  first  and  last,  should  reverence  him  and  love 
him  as  the  Christ,  crucified,  risen,  glorified,  divine. 

Three  times  in  the  brief  compass  of  this  salutation  Paul 
repeats  the  blessed  title.  He  calls  himself  “an  apostle  of 
Christ  Jesus”;  he  speaks  of  “the  life  which  is  in  Christ 
Jesus”;  he  prays  for  grace,  mercy  and  peace  “from  God 
the  Father  and  Christ  Jesus.”  Possibly  as  we  begin  our 
letters  or  address  ourselves  to  the  various  tasks  of  life,  it 
would  be  helpful  for  us  likewise  to  remember  that  we  are 
servants  of  Christ,  that  our  lives  are  linked  with  Christ, 
and  that  all  our  blessings  flow  from  Christ.  Surely  this 
would  give  a  new  gladness  to  our  most  dreary  days. 


88 


SECOND  TIMOTHY 


II  Tim.  1 :  3-5 


In  the  very  phrase,  “the  promise  of  the  life  which  is  in 
Christ  Jesus,”  there  is  a  wealth  of  meaning.  Paul  here 
indicates  that  the  apostleship  is  due  to  divine  appointment, 
for  he  calls  himself  an  apostle  “through  the  will  of  God,” 
and  he  further  declares  that  this  appointment  is  in  order 
that  he  may  proclaim  the  gospel  which  he  here  calls  the 
promise  of  life.  This  is  the  very  essence  of  the  good  news. 
It  offers  life  in  all  its  fullness  to  those  who  submit  their 
lives  to  Christ,  to  those  who  can  use  the  word  which  Paul 
adds  when  for  the  third  time  he  refers  to  “Christ  Jesus” 
and  calls  him  his  “Lord.”  If  Christ  Jesus  is  our  Lord,  if 
we  truly  belong  to  him,  then  he  imparts  to  us  the  life 
which  is  life  indeed. 

Much  of  the  blessedness  of  this  life  is  summed  up  in  the 
prayer  which  Paul  offers  for  Timothy,  and  which  forms 
the  real  substance  of  this  salutation:  “Grace,  mercy, 
peace,  from  God  the  Father  and  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord.” 
Only  in  his  letters  to  Timothy  does  Paul  unite  these  three 
luminous  terms.  Elsewhere  he  speaks  of  “grace”  and 
“peace,”  but  here  he  adds  “mercy,”  and  these  three  to¬ 
gether  appear  to  include  all  that  Paul  could  wish  for 
Timothy  in  this  world  and  the  next;  and  yet,  the  enjoy¬ 
ment  of  all  that  they  signify  is  for  everyone  whose  hope 
and  trust  are  in  “God  the  Father  and  Christ  Jesus  our 
Lord.” 

B.  THANKSGIVING.  Ch.  1:3-5 

3  I  thank  God,  whom  I  serve  from  my  forefathers  in  a  pure 
conscience,  how  unceasing  is  my  remembrance  of  thee  in  my 
supplications,  night  and  day  4  longing  to  see  thee,  remember¬ 
ing  thy  tears,  that  I  may  be  filled  with  joy;  5  having  been 
reminded  of  the  unfeigned  faith  that  is  in  thee ;  which  dwelt 
first  in  thy  grandmother  Lois,  and  thy  mother  Eunice ;  and,  I 
am  persuaded,  in  thee  also. 

As  is  usual  in  beginning  his  letters,  Paul  follows  the 
opening  salutation  with  a  thanksgiving  and  a  prayer. 
Here  the  thanksgiving  is  for  the  faith  of  Timothy,  and 
the  petition  is  that  Timothy  may  be  restored  to  Paul. 
The  thanksgiving  and  the  prayer,  as  in  other  letters,  are 
closely  entwined,  and  they  are  expressed  in  a  sentence 


II  Tim.  1 :  Z-5 


THANKSGIVING 


89 


which  is  somewhat  difficult  to  understand  because  the 
phrases  are  so  condensed  and  because  their  exact  relation 
is  not  easy  to  discover.  The  meaning  is  in  substance  as 
follows:  “I  thank  the  God  of  my  fathers,  whom  I  also 
worship  with  a  pure  conscience,  that  I  unceasingly  re¬ 
member  you  in  my  prayers.  When  I  remember  the  tears 
you  shed  at  our  parting,  night  and  day  I  long  to  see  you 
again,  that  I  may  be  filled  with  joy.  I  am  grateful  at  re¬ 
ceiving  a  reminder  of  your  sincere  faith,  a  faith  which 
dwelt  first  in  your  grandmother  Lois,  and  in  your  mother 
Eunice,  as  it  dwells,  I  know,  in  you.” 

In  these  words  Paul  indicates  the  preciousness  of  Chris¬ 
tian  faith  and  the  pricelessness  of  Christian  friendship. 
He  feels  that  this  faith  is  the  same  as  that  which  animated 
his  fathers  before  him,  the  same  which  dwelt  in  the  heart 
of  Timothy  and  had  inspired  his  grandmother  and  his 
mother.  Christianity  and  Judaism  in  the  mind  of  Paul 
were  not  distinct  religions;  the  former  was  an  outgrowth 
of  the  latter.  It  was  its  fulfillment,  its  culmination,  its 
glory.  The  faith  of  their  Jewish  parents,  Paul  regarded  as 
not  different  in  kind  from  that  which  was  exercised  by 
Timothy  and  by  himself.  Faith  is  submission  to  God  and 
dependence  upon  him  and  love  for  him.  Faith  accepts 
what  God  reveals  and  the  revelation  through  the  prophets 
finds  its  climax  and  its  completeness  in  Jesus  Christ. 

However,  when  Paul  uses  the  words,  “from  my  fore¬ 
fathers,”  in  connection  with  his  worship  and  religious  serv¬ 
ice,  he  means  not  only  that  he  worships  the  God  of  his 
ancestors  and  worships  as  they  worshiped,  but  also  that  it 
is  to  them  that  he  owes  his  religious  faith.  He  is  intimating 
the  same  in  reference  to  Timothy.  He  intimates  that 
Timothy’s  faith  is  due  to  the  influence  of  Lois  and  Eunice, 
his  grandmother  and  his  mother.  He  is  thus  reminding  us 
that  faith  can  be  communicated,  that  family  religion  is  a 
matter  of  supreme  importance,  and  that  an  inheritance  of 
godly  traditions  and  religious  instincts  is  a  blessed  pos¬ 
session.  Paul  tells  us  both  of  the  responsibilities  and  of  the 
privileges  of  parents.  He  points  us  also  to  the  grounds  for 
gratitude  in  the  hearts  of  children.  He  intimates  that  our 
faith  is  usually  a  gift  which  we  owe  to  others.  Most  of  all, 


90 


SECOND  TIMOTHY 


II  Tim.  1:3-5 


he  emphasizes  the  value  of  this  gift.  It  was  because  of  the 
faith  of  Timothy  that  Paul  was  thankful  to  remember  him, 
was  thankful  that  he  remembered  him  unceasingly.  It 
was  because  of  the  faith  of  Timothy  that  Paul  so  longed 
to  see  him.  It  was  the  manifestation  of  this  faith  that  had 
made  Timothy  so  dear  to  the  apostle  and  that  made  Paul 
certain  that  the  presence  of  his  friend  would  bring  cheer 
and  comfort  even  in  the  dreary  dungeon  at  Rome. 

It  is  thus  the  picture  of  a  Christian  friendship  which  is 
presented  to  us  in  these  touching  words,  as  the  epistle 
opens.  The  aged  apostle  intimates  that  even  those  who 
differ  far  in  age,  in  attainment,  and  in  disposition,  can  be 
closely  knit  together  in  the  indissoluble  bonds  of  true  love. 
It  was  this  affection  that  made  Paul  long,  night  and  day, 
for  the  presence  of  his  young  friend.  He  knew  that  his 
love  was  returned;  he  remembered  how  Timothy  had 
wept  when  they  had  been  torn  apart,  possibly  on  the  occa¬ 
sion  of  Paul’s  arrest;  and  now  that  the  shadows  of  death 
are  deepening  around  him,  Paul  sends  this  tender  message 
to  express  his  devotion,  to  cheer  Timothy  in  his  difficulties, 
but  supremely,  to  summon  Timothy  to  his  side.  It  was  a 
Christian  friendship  which  gave  to  the  world  this  match¬ 
less  letter  of  farewell. 


II  Tim.  1:  6-12 


ZEAL  AND  COURAGE 


91 


11.  Exhortations  to  Steadfastness  in  Service. 

Chs.  1  :  6  to  2  ;  13 


A.  TO  ZEAL  AND  COURAGE:  THE  EXAMPLE 
OF  PAUL.  Ch.  1:6-12 

6  For  which  cause  I  put  thee  in  remembrance  that  thou  stir 
up  the  gift  of  God,  which  is  in  thee  through  the  laying  on 
of  my  hands.  7  For  God  gave  us  not  a  spirit  of  fearfulness; 
but  of  power  and  love  and  discipline.  8  Be  not  ashamed  there¬ 
fore  of  the  testimony  of  our  Lord,  nor  of  me  his  prisoner:  but 
suffer  hardship  with  the  gospel  according  to  the  power  of 
God;  9  who  saved  us,  and  called  us  with  a  holy  calling,  not 
according  to  our  works,  but  according  to  his  own  purpose  and 
grace,  which  was  given  us  in  Christ  Jesus  before  times 
eternal,  10  but  hath  now  been  manifested  by  the  appearing 
of  our  Saviour  Christ  Jesus,  who  abolished  death,  and  brought 
life  and  immortality  to  light  through  the  gospel,  1 1  whereunto 
I  was  appointed  a  preacher,  and  an  apostle,  and  a  teacher. 
12  For  which  cause  I  suffer  also  these  things:  yet  I  am  not 
ashamed;  for  I  know  him  whom  I  have  believed,  and  I  am 
persuaded  that  he  is  able  to  guard  that  which  I  have  com¬ 
mitted  unto  him  against  that  day. 

The  immediate  purpose  of  Paul  in  writing  this  epistle  is 
to  summon  Timothy  to  Rome;  however,  his  larger  design 
is  to  prepare  Timothy  for  the  approaching  death  of  his 
beloved  leader  and  to  encourage  Timothy  to  be  faithful 
to  his  task  as  pastor  of  the  great  church  at  Ephesus. 

Accordingly,  when  he  has  expressed  his  gratitude  for  the 
sincerity  and  devotion  of  Timothy  and  his  own  longing  to 
see  him,  Paul  opens  his  message  with  a  comprehensive 
charge,  urging  Timothy  to  zeal  in  his  pastoral  work  and 
to  the  fullest  use  of  that  spiritual  equipment  which  has 
been  given  him  for  public  service,  or  as  Paul  expresses  it, 
"Stir  up  the  gift  of  God,  which  is  in  thee.” 

He  bases  this  appeal  on  the  double  ground  of  the  faith 
Timothy  has  shown  and  of  the  gift  he  has  received.  The 
reality  and  purity  of  that  faith  Paul  never  doubts  or  ques¬ 
tions.  He  knows  that  it  has  been  transmitted  to  his  young 


92 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  1:  6-12 


friend  from  a  godly  mother  and  grandmother,  and  that 
this  faith  has  only  grown  more  firm  and  clear  since  it  has 
centered  upon  Christ  as  a  Saviour  and  Lord. 

The  usefulness  of  Timothy  is  not  endangered  by  doubt; 
his  peril  lies  in  timidity  and  self-consciousness  and  fear. 
This  has  always  been  his  temptation^  and  now  it  will  be¬ 
come  the  more  serious  when  death  has  robbed  him  of  his 
inspiring  leader,  when  opposition  to  the  Christian  sect  has 
grown  more  bitter,  when  false  teachers  within  the  Church 
have  become  more  bold. 

For  this  reason  Paul  reminds  Timothy  not  only  of  the 
faith  which  has  never  failed  him  but  also  of  the  special 
grace  for  service  that  God  has  given  him.  The  reception 
of  this  gift  Paul  connects  with  the  time  when  Timothy 
was  ordained  to  the  ministry.  From  the  references  here 
and  in  the  former  epistle,  it  would  seem  that  in  view  of  the 
high  qualifications  possessed  by  Timothy  and  of  his  pre¬ 
dicted  usefulness,  Paul  had  united  with  the  members  of 
the  presbytery  in  laying  hands  upon  Timothy  and  in  thus 
appointing  him  to  his  sacred  office.  It  seems,  further,  that 
as  Timothy  yielded  himself  to  the  service  of  Christ,  the 
Spirit  of  the  Master  imparted  to  him  special  equipment 
for  his  task.  The  result  of  this  divine  influence,  as  Paul 
here  declares,  was  not  a  spirit  of  timidity,  but  of  strength 
and  of  love  which  casts  out  fear,  and  of  the  self-discipline 
which  overcomes  weakness  and  gives  confidence  in  action. 

Therefore,  in  face  of  new  difficulties,  being  reminded  of 
the  experiences  of  his  ordination  hour,  Timothy  is  encour¬ 
aged  to  draw  upon  those  stores  of  grace  which  by  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Spirit  ever  were  at  his  command. 

Timothy  was  not  the  last  Christian  minister  by  whom 
this  exhortation  has  been  needed.  Many  of  his  successors 
to-day  should  heed  the  exhortation  to  “stir  up,”  or  to 
rekindle,  or  to  fan  into  a  flame,  the  gifts  that  are  in  them. 
Lack  of  zeal  in  the  Christian  ministry  may  be  due  to  dis¬ 
couragement,  to  doubt,  to  the  dull  monotony  of  toil,  or  to 
timidity  and  fear.  However,  such  zeal  may  be  aroused  by 
appealing  to  the  same  fact  which  Paul  here  mentions. 
Every  public  servant  of  Christ  may  be  reminded  helpfully 
of  the  faith  which  he  has  inherited  from  a  godly  ancestry. 


II  Tim.  1:  6-12 


ZEAL  AND  COURAGE 


93 


and  which  has  to  the  present  dwelt  in  his  soul.  He  may 
also  remember  the  ordination  by  which  he  was  set  aside 
for  his  sacred  work. 

For  we  regard  this  service  both  as  a  recognition  of  in¬ 
herent  gifts,  and  also  as  appointment  to  an  office;  but 
further,  we  believe  that  in  this  solemn  hour,  as  a  candidate 
yields  himself  anew  to  the  service  of  Christ,  he  is  granted 
by  the  Holy  Spirit  a  special  equipment  for  his  high  calling. 
The  gift  is  not  magical,  not  miraculous,  not  mystical,  but 
it  is  none  the  less  real,  and  in  many  future  hours  of  diffi¬ 
culty  he  can  gain  new  heart  as  he  remembers  that  the 
Spirit  who  is  ever  with  him  will  grant  him  all  needed  grace. 

However,  this  message  as  to  the  need  of  using  the  gifts 
which  God  grants  is  for  all  the  followers  of  Christ,  whatever 
their  special  task  or  sphere  in  life.  There  is  always  a  danger 
of  neglecting  opportunities,  of  burying  talents,  and  of  al¬ 
lowing  spiritual  fervor  to  be  quenched.  Much  more  would 
be  accomplished  for  Christ  and  for  those  about  us  if  we 
were  not  held  back  by  fear  of  failure,  by  timidity  and 
dread  of  criticism;  but  our  hearts  can  ever  be  strengthened 
as  we  remember  that  Christ  who  summons  us  to  his  service 
is  ever  ready  to  grant  us  by  his  Spirit  the  wisdom  and  the 
strength  which  we  need. 

In  view  of  the  spiritual  equipment  which  God  has  gi\'en 
him,  Timothy  is  urged  not  to  be  ashamed  either  of  his 
testimony  for  Christ  or  of  Paul  who  has  been  imprisoned 
for  his  loyalty  to  Christ;  but  rather  to  endure  bravely  the 
hardships  which  may  be  involved  in  preaching  the  gospel. 

For  such  endurance  Timothy  can  rely  upon  the  power 
of  God  who  has  revealed  his  grace  in  the  great  salvation 
which  he  has  provided  through  Christ  Jesus.  He  has  se¬ 
cured  deliverance  from  the  guilt  and  power  of  sin  and  has 
brought  us  into  a  holy  life,  not  in  view  of  any  merit  of  our 
own,  but  because  of  his  gracious  purpose  formed  in  eternity 
and  manifested  in  time  '‘by  the  appearing  of  our  Saviour 
Christ  Jesus,  who  abolished  death,  and  brought  life  and 
immortality  to  light  through  the  gospel.” 

This,  then,  was  the  assurance  given  to  Timothy  that  if 
God,  in  absolute  grace,  has  called  us  to  a  new  life  of  conse¬ 
cration,  and  has  promised  us  a  future  life  of  glory,  he  cer- 


94 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  1:  6-12 


tainly  will  give  us  power  and  protection  in  our  present 
acts  of  service. 

The  declaration  that  Christ  Jesus  has  “abolished 
death”  means  not  only  that  he  overcame  death  and  made 
it  of  no  effect  in  his  own  resurrection,  but  also  that  for  his 
followers  he  has  taken  from  death  its  “sting,”  its  “fear,” 
and  its  “power.”  The  sting  of  death  consisted  in  the 
consciousness  that  it  was  the  consequence  of  sin.  The 
Christian  knows,  however,  that  he  is  not  under  condemna¬ 
tion  and  that  for  him  death  is  not  the  penalty  for  personal 
guilt.  The  fear  of  death  had  kept  all  the  human  race  in  a 
bondage  of  dread ;  but  for  the  Christian  the  king  of  terrors 
has  become  a  slave ;  he  is  clad  indeed  in  a  livery  of  black, 
but  he  is  sent  to  draw  back  the  curtains  ot  mystery  and  to 
lead  the  follower  of  Christ  into  the  spacious  chambers  of 
the  Father’s  house. 

Death  once  had  the  power  of  hopeless  destruction;  now 
it  is  known  that  death  some  day  must  relinquish  all  that 
for  a  time  he  is  allowed  to  claim,  and  that  even  the  grave 
is  to  lose  its  temporary  victory. 

As  Paul  adds,  “life”  in  all  its  fullness,  life  for  time  and 
eternity,  and  an  “immortality”  of  deathless  “incorrup¬ 
tion  ”  have  been  brought  to  light  through  the  gospel.  Paul 
does  not  mean  that  such  “life”  and  “immortality”  were 
unknown  before;  they  had  been  vaguely  discerned;  but 
upon  them  the  gospel  has  thrown  a  flood  of  light.  Before, 
they  were  dim  hopes,  but  now  the  gospel  of  Christ  has 
made  them  stand  out  in  all  the  splendor  of  bright  realities. 

Surely  no  one  needs  to  be  ashamed  of  such  a  gospel,  and 
thus  Paul  further  encourages  Timothy  by  declaring  how 
gladly  he  himself  is  suffering  as  a  bearer  of  such  good  news, 
and  with  fearlessness  is  now  looking  into  the  face  of  death. 

“For  which  cause,”  that  is,  because  of  my  loyalty  to 
the  gospel,  “I  suffer  also  these  things” — these  chains,  this 
dungeon,  this  darkness,  this  desertion,  this  loneliness,  this 
hatred:  “yet  I  am  not  ashamed;  for  I  know  him  whom  I 
have  believed,  and  I  am  persuaded  that  he  is  able  to  guard 
that  which  I  have  committed  unto  him  against  that  day.” 

The  sacred  “deposit  ”  to  which  Paul  refers  is  taken  some- 


II  Tim.  1:  6-12 


ZEAL  AND  COURAGE 


95 


times  as  a  reference  to  the  gospel  which  God  has  entrusted 
to  him  and  which  Paul  believes  will  be  divinely  guarded 
until  Christ  himself  returns.  Such  is  the  meaning  of  the 
same  Greek  word  in  the  next  verse  but  one,  and  also  in 
the  next  to  the  last  verse  in  the  preceding  letter;  and  such 
an  interpretation  is  full  of  significance. 

More  commonly,  however,  this  ‘Meposit”  is  taken  as 
indicating  the  soul  of  Paul,  his  life,  all  that  he  has  and  is. 
In  the  light  which  the  gospel  throws  upon  life  and  immor¬ 
tality,  even  as  he  stands  under  the  very  shadow  of  ap¬ 
proaching  death,  Paul  has  no  fear;  he  knows  that  he  will 
be  safely  guarded  even  unto  the  day  of  the  glorious  ap¬ 
pearing  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Such  a  blessed  assurance  belongs  to  all  the  followers  of 
Christ;  they  share  it  with  Paul,  and  because  of  this  con¬ 
fidence,  they  too  rejoice  in  the  gospel  and  are  inclined  to 
steadfast  service,  and  are  triumphant  over  fear,  and  live 
in  the  light  of  deathless  hope. 


96 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  1:  13-18 


B.  TO  FIDELITY  AND  LOYALTY:  THE  EXAMPLE  OF 
ONESIPHORUS.  Ch.  1:  13-18 

13  Hold  tile  pattern  of  sound  words  which  thou  hast  heard 
from  me,  in  faith  and  love  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus.  14  That 
good  thing  which  was  committed  unto  thee  guard  through  the 
Holy  Spirit  which  dwelleth  in  us. 

15  This  thou  knowest,  that  all  that  are  in  Asia  turned  away 
from  me;  of  whom  are  Phygelus  and  Hermogenes.  16  The 
Lord  grant  mercy  unto  the  house  of  Onesiphorus:  for  he  oft 
refreshed  me,  and  was  not  ashamed  of  my  chain ;  17  but,  when 
he  was  in  Rome,  he  sought  me  diligently,  and  found  me  18 
(the  Lord  grant  unto  him  to  find  mercy  of  the  Lord  in  that 
day) ;  and  in  how  many  things  he  ministered  at  Ephesus,  thou 
knowest  very  well. 

In  opening  this  letter,  Paul  has  already  warned  Timothy 
against  being  ashamed  either  of  the  gospel  he  is  preaching 
or  of  his  friend  who  for  the  sake  of  the  gospel  is  now  a 
prisoner  at  Rome.  This  warning  forms  the  substance  of 
the  two  paragraphs  with  which  this  first  chapter  closes. 
The  first  of  them,  vs.  13,  14,  urges  Timothy  faithfully  to 
preserve  the  truth  of  the  gospel,  and  the  second,  vs.  15-18, 
encourages  him  to  be  loyal  in  his  friendship  for  Paul. 

The  former  of  these  is  in  substance  a  double  exhortation. 
It  consists  of  two  parallel  commands.  In  the  first,  it  is 
insisted  that  Timothy  must  hold  carefully,  as  a  pattern  or 
outline  of  the  Christian  faith,  the  sound  teaching  which 
he  has  received  from  Paul.  In  the  second,  he  is  told  to 
guard  the  sacred  treasure  of  the  truth  which  has  been 
committed  to  his  trust.  In  the  first  case,  this  fidelity  is 
declared  to  be  possible  by  maintaining  the  “faith  and  love 
which  is  in  Christ  Jesus.”  In  the  second  case,  the  deposit 
is  to  be  guarded  in  the  power  of  “the  Holy  Spirit  which 
dwelleth  in  us.” 

As  Paul  uses  the  phrase,  “pattern  of  sound  words,”  he 
implies  that  his  own  teaching  has  been  merely  an  outline, 
or  brief  summary,  of  the  truths  which  the  gospel  contains, 
but  that  this  outline  is  free  from  error  and  must  be  faith- 


II  Tim.  1;  13-18  FIDELITY  AND  LOYALTY 


97 


fully  held  and  proclaimed.  He  further  indicates  that  such 
an  outline  may  be  expanded  and  that  other  statements  of 
the  truth  will  be  helpful,  but  they  must  be  in  accordance 
with  the  beliefs  which  Paul  himself  has  set  forth  in  the 
gospel  message  committed  to  Timothy.  Still  further  he 
indicates  that  this  revealed  truth  must  be  held  “in  faith 
and  love.”  That  is,  it  must  be  accepted  with  the  heart  and 
expressed  in  life  and  conduct;  and,  further,  must  be  pro¬ 
claimed  and  defended  with  the  charity  and  gentleness 
which  become  a  follower  of  Christ. 

In  his  parallel  command,  Paul  describes  the  gospel  as  a 
“deposit,”  a  treasure  which  has  been  committed  to 
Timothy  as  a  sacred  trust.  It  is  neither  to  be  lost  nor 
destroyed,  nor  is  its  beauty  to  be  marred  by  hostile  hands. 
In  the  presence  of  false  teachers  and  in  view  of  the  preva¬ 
lence  of  unsound  doctrine,  Timothy  is  assured  that  to 
safeguard  the  gospel  he  needs  divine  aid.  He  must  depend 
upon  the  grace  and  strength  which  will  be  afforded  him 
by  the  indwelling  Spirit  of  Christ. 

The  need  of  such  commands  has  never  ceased.  In  all 
ages  of  thfe  Church  the  gospel  has  been  endangered  both 
by  false  friends  and  by  open  enemies.  The  form  of  its 
statement  may  sometimes  differ,  but  its  every  proclama¬ 
tion  should  conform  to  “the  pattern”  given  to  the  Church 
by  the  apostle.  At  times  it  must  be  stoutly  defended ;  and 
this  can  best  be  done  by  those  whose  faith  is  accompanied 
by  love;  and  surely  these  virtues  are  gifts  of  “the  Holy 
Spirit  which  dwelleth  in  us”;  only  by  his  power  and  wis¬ 
dom  shall  we  be  able  to  guard  “that  good  thing”  which 
has  been  committed  to  us  by  Christ  Jesus.  To-day  he  is 
calling  not  only  his  ordained  ministers  but  also  all  of  his 
followers  to  guard  the  sacred  treasure  of  revealed  truth 
“in  faith  and  love.” 

In  order  that  Timothy  may  be  strengthened  in  his  loy¬ 
alty,  Paul  gives  two  examples,  one  of  warning  and  the 
other  of  encouragement.  The  first  is  that  of  the  false 
friends  who  have  deserted  him;  the  second  is  of  One- 
siphorus,  whose  devotion  Timothy  well  knows.  There  is 
something  pathetic  in  the  words  of  the  lonely  apostle,  “all 
that  are  in  Asia  turned  away  from  me.”  Just  who  these 


98 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  1:  13-18 


were,  it  is  impossible  to  learn.  There  is  something  of 
pardonable  exaggeration  in  the  term,  “all  ...  in  Asia.” 
Paul  is  referring  to  former  friends  in  Roman  Asia,  in  the 
small  province  which  occupied  only  a  fraction  of  what  is 
now  known  as  Asia  Minor;  but  even  there  Paul  still  has 
loyal  friends;  for  it  was  in  Ephesus,  the  capital  city,  that 
Timothy,  to  whom  this  letter  is  written,  is  presiding  over 
his  important  church.  It  is  evident,  however,  that  many 
of  these  professed  Christians  have  proved  false  to  Paul  in 
the  hour  of  his  need.  Some  have  thought  that  this  deser¬ 
tion  was  at  the  time  when  Paul  was  arrested ;  others  have 
felt  that  the  apostle  must  have  written  from  Rome  asking 
in  vain  for  sympathy  and  help  from  these  former  followers. 
The  circumstances  are  obscure,  but  the  fact  is  clear,  that 
the  heart  of  the  aged  apostle  was  saddened  by  the  con¬ 
sciousness  that  those  upon  whom  he  had  relied  proved 
faithless  when  their  friendship  was  most  needed.  Among 
these  Paul  mentions  two,  Phygelus  and  Hermogenes. 
They  are  not  named  elsewhere  in  the  New  Testament, 
but  they  have  attained  an  immortality  of  disgrace  by 
their  defection  from  the  great  apostle  of  Christ. 

In  striking  contrast  Paul  names  Onesiphorus,  evidently 
another  member  of  the  Ephesian  church,  a  man  who, 
while  Paul  was  still  in  that  city,  rendered  to  him  repeated 
services  of  love,  and  who  later,  when  Paul  had  been  im¬ 
prisoned  in  Rome,  made  a  diligent  search  until  he  dis¬ 
covered  the  apostle  in  his  dungeon;  and  then,  instead  of 
being  ashamed  of  the  deserted  and  despised  leader,  fre¬ 
quently  “refreshed”  him,  both  in  relieving  his  necessities 
and  by  comforting  him  with  his  companionship  and  love. 
As  Paul  reminds  Timothy  of  this  devotion  and  loyalty,  he 
utters  the  hope  that  the  Lord  will  grant  mercy  to  the 
family  of  this  faithful  friend,  and  that  to  the  friend  him¬ 
self  mercy  would  be  shown  in  the  day  of  the  Lord’s  return. 
This  latter  hope  as  expressed  by  Paul  has  been  taken  by  a 
large  portion  of  the  Christian  Church  as  a  warrant  for  the 
practice  of  offering  “prayers  for  the  dead.”  The  latter  is 
a  subject  which  must  be  approached  with  caution  and  with 
reverence;  yet  it  would  seem  that  the  custom  has  no  firm 
support  here,  nor  elsewhere  in  Scripture.  In  the  first  place, 


II  Tim.  1:  13-18  FIDELITY  AND  LOYALTY 


99 


it  is  by  no  means  certain  that  Onesiphorus  was  dead.  He 
was  separated  from  his  family;  he  had  recently  been  in 
Rome,  but  quite  probably  he  was  at  this  time  on  his 
homeward  journey  to  Ephesus.  Then,  in  the  second  place, 
the  hope  or  desire  expressed  by  Paul,  even  if  regarded  as  a 
prayer,  was  by  no  means  of  the  character  of  those  petitions 
which  are  commonly  offered  for  the  dead.  It  did  not  re¬ 
gard  the  present  condition  of  his  friend,  nor  his  experience 
in  the  mysteries  of  the  life  which  lies  beyond  our  human 
vision.  It  concerned  only  the  time  of  the  return  of  Christ, 
and  expressed  the  hope  that  the  loyal  friend  of  the  apostle 
would  then  be  fully  rewarded  for  his  fidelity  and  his  care. 
We  are  certain  that  our  loved  ones  depart  to  be  with  Christ, 
and  in  the  perfect  blessedness  of  his  glorious  presence  they 
can  hardly  be  in  need  of  our  petitions;  and,  further,  if  to 
pray  for  the  departed  were  our  task,  or  even  our  privilege, 
it  seems  probable  that  Scripture  would  contain  some  more 
definite  encouragement,  some  more  clear  command. 

While  this  paragraph  may  not  encourage  prayers  for 
the  dead,  it  surely  must  have  warned  Timothy  against  the 
false  friendship  which  endures  only  in  times  of  prosperity 
and  popularity,  and  then  withers  before  the  first  breath  of 
hardship  or  suffering  or  disgrace.  It  further  reminds  us  of 
the  value  of  true  friendships  as  we  see  how  dependent 
upon  the  ministry  and  sympathy  of  those  who  were  dear 
to  his  heart  even  the  great  apostle  felt  himself  to  be. 


100 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  2:  1-13 


C.  TO  TRANSMIT  THE  TRUTH.  AND  TO  ENDURE  HARDSHIP 

FOR  ITS  SAKE.  Ch.  2:  1-13 

1  Thou  therefore,  my  child,  be  strengthened  in  the  grace 
that  is  in  Christ  Jesus.  2  And  the  things  which  thou  hast  heard 
from  me  among  many  witnesses,  the  same  commit  thou  to 
faithful  men,  who  shall  he  able  to  teach  others  also.  3  Suffer 
hardship  with  me,  as  a  good  soldier  of  Christ  Jesus.  4  No 
soldier  on  service  entangleth  himself  in  the  affairs  of  this  life ; 
that  he  may  please  him  who  enrolled  him  as  a  soldier.  5  And 
if  also  a  man  contend  in  the  games,  he  is  not  crowned,  except 
he  have  contended  lawfully.  6  The  husbandman  that  laboreth 
must  be  the  first  to  partake  of  the  fruits.  7  Consider  what  I 
say ;  for  the  Lord  shall  give  thee  understanding  in  all  things. 
8  Remember  Jesus  Christ,  risen  from  the  dead,  of  the  seed  of 
David,  according  to  my  gospel:  9  wherein  I  suffer  hardship 
unto  bonds,  as  a  malefactor ;  but  the  word  of  God  is  not  bound. 
10  Therefore  I  endure  all  things  for  the  elect’s  sake,  that 
they  also  may  obtain  the  salvation  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus 
with  eternal  glory.  11  Faithful  is  the  saying:  For  if  we  died 
with  him,  we  shall  also  live  with  him:  12  if  we  endure,  we 
shall  also  reign  with  him:  if  we  shall  deny  him,  he  also  will 
deny  us:  13  if  we  are  faithless,  he  abideth  faithful;  for  he 
cannot  deny  himself. 

Paul  is  still  encouraging  Timothy  to  steadfastness  in  his 
Christian  service,  as  here  in  the  first  and  second  verses  of 
this  chapter  he  gives  a  comprehensive  exhortation  and 
also  a  specific  command. 

This  exhortation  is  based  upon  the  motives  to  which 
Paul  has  been  appealing  in  the  first  chapter  of  the  epistle. 
In  view  of  the  faith  of  Timothy,  and  of  his  gift  for  service, 
and  of  the  glory  of  the  gospel,  and  of  the  encouraging  ex¬ 
ample  of  Paul,  and  of  the  heroic  devotion  of  Onesiphorus, 
Timothy  is  urged  to  be  strong,  to  be  brave,  to  be  steadfast : 
“Thou  therefore,  my  child,  be  strengthened  in  the  grace 
that  is  in  Christ  Jesus.”  Thus  Timothy  is  turned  to  Christ 
and  directed  to  seek  from  him  the  divine  help  which  he  is 
ready  to  bestow.  If  Timothy  will  depend  upon  Christ,  he 


II  Tim.  2:  M3  TO  TRANSMIT  THE  TRUTH 


101 


will  gain  all  needed  grace,  a  gift  unmerited  but  also  un¬ 
limited.  Thus  for  all  the  followers  of  Christ,  both  those 
who  bear  the  responsibility  of  public  service  and  those 
whose  spheres  of  labor  may  be  most  obscure,  there  is 
offered  an  exhaustless  supply  of  grace.  By  it  they  can  be 
strengthened,  not  merely  as  passive  recipients,  but  as  they 
eagerly  seek  divine  help  and  earnestly  appropriate  it  to 
meet  their  needs. 

This  exhortation  is  followed  by  a  specific  command  to 
commit  the  gospel  as  a  sacred  trust  to  reliable  teachers, 
who  in  turn  will  hand  it  on  to  others,  and  thus  secure  its 
preservation  and  its  proclamation  for  succeeding  genera¬ 
tions.  In  describing  this  sacred  trust  which  he  is  to  hand 
on  to  others,  Paul  reminds  Timothy  that  he  himself  had 
received  this  trust  from  the  apostle  in  the  presence  of 
*  “many  witnesses.”  The  reference  seems  to  be  to  the  time 
when  Timothy  was  ordained  to  the  ministry.  Then,  in  the 
presence  of  the  presbyters  and  others  who  may  have  been 
present,  this  treasure  had  been  committed,  in  a  solemn 
service,  to  the  care  of  the  young  messenger.  Paul  is  now 
reminding  him  that  it  is  his  duty  to  select  faithful  men, 
who  under  the  direction  of  Timothy  will  likewise  be 
ordained  to  the  gospel  ministry. 

The  “faithful  men”  to  whom  the  truth  is  to  be  thus 
entrusted  are  evidently  the  “bishops”  or  “elders”  or 
“presbyters”  whom  Paul  has  described  in  the  previous 
epistle  as  the  permanent  officers  of  the  church.  This 
definite  reference  to  Church  organization  is  in  accordance 
with  the  other  Pastoral  Letters.  In  First  Timothy  and 
also  in  Titus,  as  in  this  letter,  three  great  themes  occupy  the 
thought  cf  the  writer.  These  are  Church  government,  sound 
doctrine,  and  consistent  living.  The  connection  in  which  the 
first  of  these  themes  is  ijientioned  here,  intimates  the  view 
of  Church  government  continually  emphasized  by  Paul.  He 
regards  it  as  a  matter  of  great  importance,  but  it  is  never 
an  end  in  itself.  It  is  designed  to  secure  the  safeguarding 
of  the  sacred  deposit  of  truth  with  which  the  Church  is 
entrusted.  It  is  for  this  reason  that  he  commands  Timothy 
to  select  men  who  are  not  only  trustworthy,  but  well- 
qualified  “  to  teach  others  also.”  This  solemn  responsibility 


102 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  2;  M3 


of  maintaining  a  strong  organization  which  will  ordain 
faithful  men  to  the  ministry  rests  upon  all  the  officers  of  , 
the  Christian  Church,  but  it  concerns  the  members  as  well. 

It  is  necessary  that  all  should  insist  that  only  those  men 
who  accept  the  inspired  teachings  of  the  apostle  and  are 
qualified  for  the  sacred  ministry  should  be  selected  as 
expounders  of  divine  truth. 

As  Paul  continues  to  urge  upon  Timothy  faithfulness  in 
the  ministerial  office,  he  declares  that  hardship  will  be  in¬ 
evitable,  but  that  reward  is  certain.  These  are  the  thoughts 
that  form  the  substance  of  the  verses  which  follow,  from 
the  third  to  the  thirteenth.  Paul  indicates  that  every 
gallant  achievement  demands  fortitude.  Therefore  Tim¬ 
othy  is  urged  to  suffer  hardship  “as  a  good  soldier  of  Christ 
Jesus.”  He  is  reminded  that  one  who  is  of  real  service  to  • 
his  commanding  officer  must  be  willing  to  disregard  all 
ties  of  home  or  of  business  and  to  do  and  to  dare  whatever 
military  service  may  demand.  Paul  further  illustrates  the 
necessity  of  self-denial  and  of  earnest  effort  from  the  case 
of  the  athlete,  who  cannot  win  the  prize  unless  he  submits 
to  the  training,  and  the  discipline,  and  the  strain,  which  the 
contest  involves.  So,  too,  with  the  laborer  who  toils  in  the 
field ;  as  a  reward  for  his  patient  service,  he  may  rightfully 
expect  the  first  share  in  the  harvest. 

These  three  illustrations  bear  a  message  for  every  fol¬ 
lower  of  Christ,  but  they  have  a  special  meaning  for  the 
Christian  minister.  Much  is  said  to-day  of  “the  strenuous 
life,”  but  we  do  not  always  realize  that  this  phrase  is  a 
fair  description  of  a  true  religious  experience.  Some  seem 
to  forget  that  to  follow  Christ  involves  ceaseless  effort, 
and  struggle,  and  sacrifice.  It  is  also  true,  however,  that 
the  compensations  are  incomparable  and  the  rewards  are 
eternal. 

Most  of  all,  is  it  true  of  the  Christian  minister  that  he 
is  called  to  a  life  which  is  well  pictured  here  in  the  striking 
parables  of  the  apostle.  He  must  be  a  soldier  who  is  ever 
eager  to  please  the  Captain  of  his  salvation,  and  who  with 
this  in  view  keeps  first  things  first  and  makes  no  entangling 
alliances  which  may  distract  his  thought  and  demand  his 


II  Tim.  2:  1-13  TO  TRANSMIT  THE  TRUTH 


103 


strength,  who  regards  himself  as  having  enlisted  for  life 
and  as  engaged  in  a  glorious  but  absorbing  campaign.  He 
must  regard  himself  as  an  athlete,  ready  to  subject  himself 
to  sacrifice  and  discipline  and  to  endure  an  agony  of  effort, 
but  he  may  be  encouraged  as  he  remembers  that  he  is 
striving  not  for  a  fading  wreath  of  olive  or  of  pine,  but  for 
a  crown  of  glory  and  of  life  “  that  fadeth  not  away.”  Then, 
too,  he  is  like  a  farmer  who  is  engaged  in  monotonous  toil. 
Unlike  that  of  the  soldier  or  the  athlete,  it  has  no  glamour 
of  peril  or  applause;  and  yet,  no  matter  how  obscure  the 
task  and  how  dreary  the  time,  even  though  he  “goes  forth 
with  weeping,”  he  is  certain  at  last  to  know  the  joy  of 
harvest.  He  cannot  fail  of  his  reward. 

The  principle  illustrated  by  the  soldier,  the  athlete,  and 
the  farmer  is  one  which  Timothy  will  be  sure  to  under¬ 
stand  and  which,  as  he  thinks  upon  this  message,  will  be 
made  increasingly  plain  to  him  by  the  Lord,  namely,  that 
without  a  cross  there  can  be  no  crown.  Of  this  principle 
the  Master  himself  is  set  forth  as  the  supreme  Exemplar, 
for  we  see  in  his  case,  as  in  no  other,  how  truly  suffering  is 
succeeded  by  glory:  “Remember  Jesus  Christ,  risen  from 
the  dead,  of  the  seed  of  David.”  Here  Paul  refers  to  the 
resurrection,  not  as  a  point  of  doctrine,  but  as  an  experi¬ 
ence  in  the  life  of  One  who,  though  as  a  man,  “  of  the  seed  of 
David,”  he  suffered  a  shameful  death,  was  raised  in  triumph 
and  crowned  with  glory  and  honor. 

This  experience  of  Christ  was  a  familiar  feature  of  the 
gospel  Paul  proclaimed,  and  of  the  great  principle  of  suf¬ 
fering  issuing  in  blessing. 

Of  this  same  principle  Paul  mentions  himself  as  a  further 
example.  His  suffering  has  been  due  to  his  faithful  preach¬ 
ing,  and  his  recompense  consists  in  the  result  of  this  min¬ 
istry.  “I  suffer  hardship  unto  bonds,”  writes  the  apostle; 
he  is  confined  as  a  criminal;  “but  the  word  of  God  is  not 
bound”;  no  opposition  of  man  can  limit  the  range  or  the 
glorious  results  of  this  gospel.  It  is  the  knowledge  of  these 
results  which  constitutes  his  reward.  Paul  is  willing  to 
endure  the  hardship  and  the  shame,  because  thereby,  in 
the  providence  of  God,  believers  are  being  saved  by  faith 
in  the  Christ  whom  Paul  proclaims,  and,  having  been 


104  SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  2:  1-13 

chosen  of  God  in  time  past,  are  being  made  heirs  of  eternal 
glory. 

Thus  countless  followers  of  the  great  apostle  have  felt; 
they,  too,  have  been  willing  to  suffer  and  to  weep  and  to 
die,  because  they  have  had  “souls  for  their  hire.” 

Paul  brings  to  its  climax  his  argument  as  to  the  sure 
reward  of  steadfast  service  by  quoting  a  “saying”  which, 
because  of  its  rhythmic  and  balanced  arrangement,  seems 
to  be  a  portion  of  an  ancient  hymn: 

“If  we  died  with  him,  we  shall  also  live  with  him: 

If  we  endure,  we  shall  also  reign  with  him: 

If  we  shall  deny  him,  he  also  will  deny  us: 

If  we  are  faithless,  he  abideth  faithful; 

For  he  cannot  deny  himself.” 

The  first  two  lines  place  in  striking  contrast  death  and 
life,  submission  and  sovereignty.  Those  who  have  suffered 
and  died  for  Christ  have  shared  his  sufferings  and  death 
in  all  reality,  and  they  will  surely  share  his  heavenly  life 
and  his  glorious  reign.  The  death  to  which  Paul  refers  is 
not  merely  the  act  of  self-dedication  which  unites  us  with 
Christ  when  we  accept  him  as  Lord  and  Master  and  seal 
our  vows  by  baptism;  rather,  here  the  reference  is  to 
Christian  martyrdom;  for  the  whole  passage  is  an  encour¬ 
agement  not  only  to  a  spiritual  experience,  but  to  courage 
and  endurance  even  to  suffering  and  death  in  the  service 
of  Christ. 

The  third  line  contains  a  warning  which  is  phrased  in 
the  very  words  of  the  Master.  We  are  reminded  of  what 
he  said  to  his  disciples:  “Every  one  therefore  who  shall 
confess  me  before  men,  him  will  I  also  confess  before  my 
Father  who  is  in  heaven.  But  whosoever  shall  deny  me 
before  men,  him  will  I  also  deny  before  my  Father  who  is 
in  heaven.”  Thus,  this  hymn  declares,  if  we  disown  him  in 
the  face  of  peril  or  of  scorn,  he  also  will  disown  us  in  the 
presence  of  his  Father  on  the  day  of  his  glorious  return. 

The  fourth  line  breathes  a  note  of  hope;  even  though  our 
faith  may  waver,  and  we  may  distrust  the  power  and  care 
of  our  Lord,  he  ever  abides  faithful;  he  cannot  be  untrue 


II  Tim.  2: 1-13  TO  TRANSMIT  THE  TRUTH 


105 


to  himself.  Of  course,  if  we  abandon  the  faith,  we  face 
darkness  and  doom,  but  not  every  act  of  unfaithfulness  is 
willful  apostasy.  The  courage  of  Peter  failed,  but  he  was 
restored;  even  in  advance  his  loving  Master  had  prayed 
for  him.  Some  honest  doubts  trouble  even  those  who  are 
devoted  to  Christ.  He  continues  faithful,  and  while  he  is 
certain  to  disown  those  who  finally  are  faithless,  yet  “he 
is  faithful  and  righteous  to  forgive”;  he  is  true  to  his 
promises  and  is  certain  to  pardon,  to  strengthen  and  to 
reward.  Thus  across  the  long  ages  and  the  vast  silences 
float  the  cadences  of  this  sweet  Christian  song,  calling  us 
to  be  earnest,  to  be  zealous,  to  be  brave,  and  encouraging 
us  to  believe  that  without  the  cross  there  is  no  crown,  and 
that  “the  way  of  the  cross  is  the  way  of  light.” 


106 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  2:  14-26 


III.  Exhortations  to  Sound  Doctrine.  Ch.  2: 14  to  4: 8 

A.  THE  EVIL  INFLUENCE  OF  FALSE  TEACHING. 

Ch.  2:  14-26 

14  Of  these  things  put  them  in  remembrance,  charging 
them  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  that  they  strive  not  about  words, 
to  no  profit,  to  the  subverting  of  them  that  hear.  15  Give  dili¬ 
gence  to  present  thyself  approved  unto  God,  a  workman  that 
needeth  not  to  be  ashamed,  handling  aright  the  word  of  truth. 
16  But  shun  profane  babblings :  for  toey  will  proceed  further  in 
ungodliness,  17  and  their  word  will  eat  as  doth  a  gangrene : 
of  whom  is  Hymenaeus  and  Philetus ;  18  men  who  concerning 
the  truth  have  erred,  saying  that  the  resurrection  is  past 
already,  and  overthrow  the  faith  of  some.  19  Howbeit  the 
firm  foundation  of  God  standeth,  having  this  seal,  The  Lord 
knoweth  them  that]  are  his :  and,  Let  every  one  that  nameth 
the  name  of  the  Lord  depart  from  unrighteousness.  20  Now  in 
a  great  house  there  are  not  only  vessels  of  gold  and  of  silver, 
but  also  of  wood  and  of  earth;  and  some  unto  honor,  and 
some  unto  dishonor.  21  If  a  man  therefore  purge  himself  from 
these,  he  shall  be  a  vessel  unto  honor,  sanctified,  meet  for  the 
master’s  use,  prepared  unto  every  good  work.  22  But  flee 
youthful  lusts,  and  follow  after  righteousness,  faith,  love, 
peace,  with  them  that  call  on  the  Lord  out  of  a  pure  heart. 
23  But  foolish  and  ignorant  questionings  refuse,  knowing  that 
they  gender  strifes.  24  And  the  Lord’s  servant  must  not 
strive,  but  be  gentle  towards  all,  apt  to  teach,  forbearing,  25 
in  meekness  correcting  them  that  oppose  themselves;  if 
peradventure  God  may  give  them  repentance  unto  the  knowl¬ 
edge  of  the  truth,  26  and  they  may  recover  themselves  out  of 
the  snare  of  the  devil,  having  been  taken  captive  by  him  imto 
his  will. 

In  the  first  half  of  this  epistle,  as  commonly  divided, 
Paul  dwells  more  particularly  upon  the  need  of  steadfast¬ 
ness  in  Christian  service;  in  the  second  half,  which  begins 
with  the  fourteenth  verse  of  the  second  chapter,  his  empha¬ 
sis  is  more  continually  upon  the  need  of  sound  doctrine. 
There  is,  however,  a  third  theme  in  all  three  Pastoral 
Epistles.  It  is  that  of  Church  organization,  and  as  in  the 


II  Tim.  2:  14-26  FALSE  TEACHING 


107 


opening  of  this  chapter,  Paul  has  urged  Timothy  to  ap¬ 
point  well-qualified  and  faithful  men  who  may  serve  as  the 
official  teachers  of  the  gospel,  so  here  he  exhorts  him  to 
put  these  officers  in  remembrance  of  the  hardship  involved 
in  ministerial  service,  but  also  of  its  rich  and  abiding  re¬ 
ward.  Timothy  further  is  most  solemnly  to  charge  these 
teachers  "that  they  strive  not  about  words,  to  no  profit, 
to  the  subverting  of  them  that  hear.”  This  is  an  injunction 
full  of  meaning  to  the  Christians  of  all  ages.  There  are 
many  religious  discussions  which  are  profitless,  in  fact, 
injurious.  Paul  does  not  mean  that  words  are  of  no  value 
or  significance.  Sometimes  a  religious  term  is  precious 
and  must  be  guarded  as  a  sacred  trust,  even  as  a  casket 
containing  a  precious  jewel  of  truth;  but  too  frequently 
these  discussions  are  for  forms  of  words,  for  which  men 
are  contending  in  pride,  in  stubbornness,  and  in  self- 
conceit.  Too  frequently  these  disputes  result  in  loss  of 
temper  and  even  in  the  weakening  of  faith. 

Timothy  is  urged  to  enforce  his  teachings  by  his  own 
example;  he  is  incited  to  eager  effort  that  he  may  be  ap¬ 
proved  of  God  as  "a  workman  that  needeth  not  to  be 
ashamed,”  that  is,  as  one  whose  work  will  stand  the  test 
of  divine  judgment  and  be  approved  even  when  inspected 
by  his  Lord.  The  particular  work  in  which  Timothy  is 
engaged  is  described  as  "handling  aright  the  word  of 
truth.”  The  exact  meaning  of  the  original  is  a  little  difficult 
to  determine.  "Handling  aright”  is  sometimes  translated 
as  "rightly  dividing,”  and  is  supposed  by  some  to  refer  to 
the  act  of  a  priest  in  dividing  the  flesh  of  a  sacrifice,  or  to 
the  work  of  cutting  straight  paths,  or  even  to  making  a 
straight  furrow;  but  whatever  the  original  meaning  of  the 
term,  when  the  word  is  connected  with  "the  word  of  truth,” 
it  means  the  task  of  the  teacher,  who  with  loyalty  and  de¬ 
votion  is  setting  forth  the  true  gospel  of  Christ.  This  is 
the  task  of  Timothy.  It  is  to  be  the  supreme  work  of 
those  officers  whom  he  is  to  appoint  to  serve  the  Christian 
Church. 

On  the  contrary,  Paul  indicates  that  there  are  already  in 
the  Church  false  teachers  whom  Timothy  is  to  avoid.  Their 
teachings  are  described  as  "profane  babblings”;  that  is, 


108 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  2:  14-26 


they  are  not  merely  worthless  and  empty;  they  are  in¬ 
jurious  and  irreligious.  The  evil  influence  of  these  teachers, 
Paul  declares,  will  become  more  powerful  and  more  danger¬ 
ous:  “Their  word  will  eat  as  doth  a  gangrene.”  This  is  a 
striking  figure  of  speech  which  Paul  employs.  It  suggests 
how  the  influence  of  false  teaching  eats  its  way  into  a  life 
and  character  like  a  deadly  cancer.  The  thought  of  this 
evil  influence  forms  the  very  center  of  the  paragraph  which 
Paul  is  here  writing.  Two  of  the  teachers  whom  he  men¬ 
tions  as  examples  are  Hymenseus  and  Philetus.  The  first 
has  been  named  in  his  previous  letter;  of  the  latter  nothing 
further  is  known  other  than  the  mention  here,  which  gives 
him  an  immortality  of  shame,  as  he  is  listed  among  those 
who,  while  professing  to  follow  Christ  and  boasting  them¬ 
selves  to  be  teachers  of  his  truth,  are  really  so  far  cor¬ 
rupting  his  doctrine  as  to  be  sources  of  spiritual  disease 
and  death. 

The  particular  truth  in  reference  to  which  these  men 
“have  erred”  is  that  of  the  resurrection.  The  exact  nature 
of  their  false  teaching  is  defined  only  as  “saying  that  the 
resurrection  is  past  already.”  It  is  probably  parallel  to 
the  theories  of  those  who,  in  modern  days,  regard  resur¬ 
rection  as  a  mere  figure  of  speech,  denoting  only  the  ex¬ 
perience  of  those  who  “on  stepping-stones”  of  their  “dead 
selves”  have  risen  to  “higher  things”;  or  of  those  who 
deny  any  future,  bodily  resurrection  and  consummation 
of  glory  at  the  return  of  Christ,  and  insist  that,  at  the  time 
of  death,  the  souls  of  believers  are  clothed  with  “spiritual,” 
“astral,”  or  “immortal”  bodies. 

The  serious  influence  of  these  errors  may  not  be  realized 
until  one  reads  the  fifteenth  chapter  of  First  Corinthians, 
in  which  Paul  shows  that  a  belief  in  a  future  resurrection 
of  believers  is  inseparable  from  a  belief  in  the  resurrection 
of  Christ,  which  Paul  declares  to  be  the  very  foundation 
stone  of  the  Christian  faith ;  and  in  this  chapter  he  shows 
further  the  perilous  results  of  abandoning  these  beliefs. 

Thus  Paul  here  declares  that  the  effect  of  “saying  that 
the  resurrection  is  past  already,”  is  to  “overthrow  the 
faith  of  some.” 

Nevertheless,  in  spite  of  false  teachers  and  of  defections 


II  Tim.  2:  14-26  FALSE  TEACHING 


109 


from  the  faith,  Paul  tells  Timothy  not  to  be  dismayed. 
The  faith  of  some  may  be  overthrown,  but  the  Church 
cannot  be  overthrown.  Paul  describes  the  Church  as  a 
great  house,  the  foundation  of  which  is  firm;  in  fact,  he 
designates  the  Church  by  the  very  phrase,  “the  firm 
foundation  of  God,”  describing  the  whole  by  a  part;  and 
he  declares  that  it  is  unshaken. 

Upon  this  “firm  foundation”  Paul  imagines  two  inscrip¬ 
tions,  one  written  from  the  divine  side  and  one  from  the 
human:  “The  Lord  knoweth  them  that  are  his,”  and  “Let 
every  one  that  nameth  the  name  of  the  Lord  depart  from 
unrighteousness.  ’  ’ 

The  first  tells  us  that  we  need  not  be  too  much  dis¬ 
tressed  by  false  teachers;  we  must  not  fear  that  they  can 
destroy  the  Church;  the  Lord  distinguishes  between  the 
false  and  the  true;  he  will  discover,  he  will  punish  and 
reward:  “the  Lord  knoweth  them  that  are  his.” 

On  the  other  hand,  if  we  profess  to  be  Christians,  we 
must  separate  ourselves  from  all  that  is  wrong  and  sinful 
either  in  belief  or  in  practice.  We  must  “depart  from 
unrighteousness.” 

It  is  evident,  then,  that  in  the  Church  there  are  always 
false  teachers  as  well  as  true.  Paul  pictures  these  two 
classes  by  comparing  them  with  the  different  vessels  or 
utensils  which  are  found  in  a  great  house;  some  are  put  to 
distasteful  and  unpleasant  uses,  and  others  are  vessels  of 
honor,  which  are  associated  with  dignity  and  delight. 
Thus  some  men  in  a  professing  church  can  be  used  only  as 
warnings  and  as  examples  of  the  perils  of  apostasy;  but, 
on  the  other  hand,  a  man  who  will  keep  himself  uncon¬ 
taminated  by  false  teachers  and  by  error,  will  be  like  a 
vessel  of  gold  or  silver,  “a  vessel  unto  honor,  sanctified, 
meet  for  the  master’s  use,  prepared  unto  every  good  work.” 
Nothing  in  the  world  is  so  pitiful  and  dishonorable  as  to 
be  a  teacher  of  error;  and  no  person  can  be  of  such  noble 
and  continuous  service  in  the  Master’s  cause  as  one  who 
is  an  intelligent  and  loyal  exponent  of  his  truth. 

However,  even  the  conscious  possession  of  truth  in  the 
face  of  abounding  error  has  its  temptations,  particularly 


110 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  2:  14-26 


for  a  young  man  who  has  enjoyed  such  peculiar  oppor¬ 
tunities  for  learning  as  had  Timothy  under  the  tuition  of 
Paul.  Therefore,  when  the  apostle  here  urges  Ti'mothy  to 
“flee  youthful  lusts,”  we  may  conclude  from  what  precedes 
and  what  follows  that  he  refers  not  so  much  to  bodily 
appetites  as  to  the  temptations  of  a  young  pastor  to  pride, 
to  conceit,  to  dogmatism,  to  contentiousness,  and  to  the 
display  of  his  own  wisdom,  either  in  exploiting  false  the¬ 
ories  or  in  defending  the  faith.  Therefore  Timothy  is  ad¬ 
monished  to  “follow  after  righteousness,  faith,  love, 
peace,  with  them  that  call  on  the  Lord  out  of  a  pure  heart.” 

Furthermore,  Timothy  is  warned  against  “foolish  and 
ignorant  questionings.”  There  are  many  such.  A  mind 
which  is  well  instructed  and  disciplined  realizes  that  there 
are  limitations  to  human  knowledge  and  to  divine  revela¬ 
tion,  and  that  it  is  foolish  to  argue  about  subjects  which 
are  merely  matters  of  speculation,  and  also  that  the  bitter 
discussion  of  less  obscure  themes  can  result  only  in  stirring 
up  strife. 

“The  Lord’s  servant  must  not  strive,”  writes  Paul. 
This  is  true  of  all  Christians,  but  especially  of  the  Christian 
minister.  No  man  more  rightfully  may  be  expected  to  win 
confidence  by  his  sweet  reasonableness,  or  to  disarm  oppo¬ 
sition  by  his  gracious  courtesy.  He  must  be  “gentle 
towards  all,  apt  to  teach,  forbearing.”  Even  when  unbe¬ 
lieving  and  exasperating  men  oppose  him,  he  must  seek 
with  all  meekness  to  lead  them  back  to  the  truth. 

It  is  significant  that  Paul  does  not  say  that  the  men  who 
oppose  the  truth  are  merely  to  be  answered  or  to  be  con¬ 
vinced;  they  are  to  be  brought  to  “repentance.”  Paul 
indicates,  as  did  Christ,  that  there  is  a  moral  element  in 
faith  and  unbelief.  When  the  gospel  has  been  clearly  pre¬ 
sented,  when  its  message  has  been  fully  stated,  then  to 
turn  from  divine  Love  and  Holiness  and  Light,  is  to  con¬ 
vict  oneself  of  having  something  evil  in  the  heart  or  in 
the  life. 

So  Paul  here  declares  that  the  false  teachers  who  have 
erred  from  the  truth  have  really  fallen  under  the  power  of 
the  Enemy  of  their  souls.  They  have  been  ensnared  by  the 
Evil  One;  they  have  been  “taken  captive  by  him  unto  his 


II  Tim.  2:  14-26  FALSE  TEACHING 


111 


will.”  It  even  is  implied,  further,  that  their  unbelief  itself 
has  resulted  in  wrong  living  and  that  by  an  acceptance  of 
the  truth  “they  may  recover  themselves  out  of  the  snare 
of  the  devil.”  This  deliverance,  however,  can  be  only  by 
divine  power.  It  is  for  the  Christian  messenger  to  present 
the  truth  clearly  and  kindly;  but  it  is  God  who  “may  give 
them  repentance”;  he  will  honor  his  own  truth,  and  he 
will  give  his  faithful  servant  the  joy  of  seeing  souls  de¬ 
livered  from  powers  of  darkness  and  of  deaths 


112 


SECOND  TIMOTHY 


II  Tim.,  ch.  3 


B.  THE  DIFFICULT  DAYS  AHEAD.  Ch.  3 

1  But  know  this,  that  in  the  last  days  grievous  times  shall 
come.  2  For  men  shall  he  lovers  of  self,  lovers  of  money, 
boastful,  haughty,  railers,  disobedient  to  parents,  unthankful, 
unholy,  3  without  natural  affection,  implacable,  slanderers, 
without  self-control,  fierce,  no  lovers  of  good,  4  traitors,  head¬ 
strong,  puffed  up,  lovers  of  pleasure  rather  than  lovers  of  God ; 
5  holding  a  form  of  godliness,  but  having  denied  the  power 
thereof:  from  these  also  turn  away.  6  For  of  these  are  they 
that  creep  into  houses,  and  take  captive  silly  women  laden 
with  sins,  led  away  by  divers  lusts,  7  ever  learning,  and 
never  able  to  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth.  8  And  even 
as  Jannes  and  Jambres  withstood  Moses,  so  do  these  also 
withstand  the  truth;  men  corrupted  in  mind,  reprobate  con¬ 
cerning  the  faith.  9  But  they  shall  proceed  no  further:  for 
their  folly  shall  be  evident  unto  all  men,  as  theirs  also  came  to 
be.  10  But  thou  didst  follow  my  teaching,  conduct,  purpose, 
faith,  longsuffering,  love,  patience,  1 1  persecutions,  sufferings; 
what  things  befell  me  at  Antioch,  at  Iconium,  at  Lystra;  what 
persecutions  I  endured:  and  out  of  them  all  the  Lord  delivered 
me.  12  Yea,  and  all  that  would  live  godly  in  Christ  Jesus  shall 
suffer  persecution.  13  But  evil  men  and  impostors  shall  wax 
worse  and  worse,  deceiving  and  being  deceived.  14  But 
abide  thou  in  the  things  which  thou  hast  learned  and  hast  been 
assured  of,  knowing  of  whom  thou  hast  learned  them;  15  and 
that  from  a  babe  thou  hast  known  the  sacred  writings  which 
are  able  to  make  thee  wise  unto  salvation  through  faith  which 
is  in  Christ  Jesus.  16  Every  scripture  inspired  of  God  is  also 
profitable  for  teaching,  for  reproof,  for  correction,  for  instruc¬ 
tion  which  is  in  righteousness :  17  that  the  man  of  God  may  be 
complete,  furnished  completely  unto  every  good  work. 

In  urging  Timothy  to  maintain  sound  doctrine,  Paul 
has  pointed  out  the  evil  influence  of  false  teaching,  and 
he  now  warns  Timothy  that  opposition  to  the  truth  will 
continue  and  will  grow  even  more  intense;  but  Timothy  is 
neither  to  be  surprised  nor  dismayed.  He  is  not  to  be  sur¬ 
prised,  because  Christ  and  his  apostles  have  made  it  clear 
that  we  live  in  an  age  of  continual  conflict  between  evil 
and  good;  he  is  not  to  be  dismayed,  because  truth  will 


II  Tim.,  ch.  3  DIFFICULT  DAYS  AHEAD 


113 


ultimately  triumph  and  its  enemies  will  be  put  to  shame. 

Here  Paul  seems  to  refer  more  especially  to  the  close  of 
the  era  in  which  we  now  live,  “the  last  days”  of  the  age 
between  the  ascension  of  Christ  and  his  return.  This  re¬ 
turn,  contrary  to  the  opinion  of  many,  Paul  does  not  re¬ 
gard  as  immediate  or  imminent;  for  in  these  Pastoral 
Epistles,  Paul  is  making  definite  provision  for  the  per¬ 
manent  organization  and  the  continuing  ministry  of  the 
Church.  He  does  affirm,  however,  that  in  the  period  be¬ 
tween  the  departure  and  the  return  of  his  Lord,  “grievous 
times”  must  be  expected.  These  times  are  to  be  grievous 
because  of  conditions  not  only  in  the  world  at  large,  but 
even  in  the  Church.  It  is  of  the  latter  that  he  here  is 
speaking.  These  times  are  to  be  difficult  for  those  who 
would  be  faithful  to  Christ;  they  will  be  seasons  of  trial,  in 
which  the  path  of  duty  will  not  always  be  plain,  nor  the 
demands  of  duty  easy  to  perform.  In  describing  the  men 
who  are  to  make  these  “last  days”  so  full  of  peril,  Paul 
declares  that  the  teachers  of  the  present  time  are  similar 
to  them  in  character  and  conduct,  and  it  is  against  such 
impostors  that  he  is  here  warning  Timothy.  In  short,  the 
entire  chapter  might  be  summed  up  in  two  exhortations: 
the  first,  to  “turn  away”  from  such  teachers  as  are  here 
described;  and  the  second,  to  abide  in  the  truth  which 
Timothy  has  been  taught. 

As  he  characterizes  the  men  of  the  “last  days,”  Paul 
employs  a  long  series  of  striking  terms.  In  these  it  may 
be  difficult  to  find  any  special  arrangement  or  division. 
However,  they  begin  with  two  Greek  words  which  are 
closely  associated,  “lovers  of  self”  and  “lovers  of  money,” 
and  they  dost  with  two  words  which  are  strikingly  con¬ 
trasted,  “lovers  of  pleasure”  and  “lovers of  God.”  Between 
these  four  words  are  five  groups  of  three  terms  each,  com¬ 
prising  an  appalling  list  of  evil  characteristics. 

The  first  group  includes  the  term  “boastful,”  that  is, 
glorying  in  self  and  endeavoring  to  pass  for  a  man  of 
greater  consequence  than  one  really  is;  “haughty,”  that  is, 
contemptuous  of  others;  “railers,”  which  denotes  those 
who  actually  abuse  and  revile  their  fellow  men.  So  these 
terms  indicate  sins  against  both  truth  and  love. 


114 


SECOND  TIMOTHY 


II  Tim.,  ch.  3 


In  the  second  group  of  vices,  “unfilial,”  “unthankful,” 
“unholy,”  are  terms  which  denote  a  wrong  relation  to 
parents,  to  benefactors,  and  to  God  himself. 

The  third  group,  “without  natural  affection,  implacable, 
slanderers,”  stands  in  striking  rebuke  to  the  words  of  our 
l.ord,  “Love  your  enemies ;  do  good  to  them  that  hate  you ; 
bless  them  that  curse  you.” 

The  fourth  group,  “without  self-control,  fierce,  no  lovers 
of  good,”  describes  the  libertine,  the  churl,  the  worldling. 

The  last  group,  “traitors,  headstrong,  puffed  up,”  de¬ 
scribes  those  who  are  treacherous  to  their  fellow  men, 
reckless,  and  marked  by  self-conceit.  The  most  distressing 
feature  of  all  is  found  in  the  closing  phrase  of  these  de¬ 
scriptive  terms,  “holding  a  form  of  godliness,  but  having 
denied  the  power  thereof,”  which  indicates  that  the  men 
described  belong  to  the  professing  Church.  They  affect 
piety,  but  they  repudiate  the  power  of  Christian  faith, 
keeping  up  a  pretense  of  religion,  but  manifesting  charac¬ 
ters  which  show  that  they  are  utterly  ignorant  of  that 
salvation  which  finds  its  essence  in  full  surrender  to  a  risen 
and  glorified  Christ. 

As  we  read  this  direful  description  at  the  present  time, 
we  become  painfully  conscious  that  the  apostle  made  no 
mistake  in  predicting  that  such  men  would  be  found  during 
future  days,  even  among  the  followers  of  Christ.  Un¬ 
happily  none  of  these  men  are  strangers  to  us;  we  have 
met  them  all.  Their  forms  are  so  familiar  that  they  cause 
us  no  surprise.  Most  distressing  of  all,  they  are  found  in 
the  Christian  Church  and  their  influence  is  such  that  we 
surely  do  well  to  be  on  our  guard  against  them,  and  to 
heed  the  word  of  the  apostle,  “  From  these  also  turn  away.” 

Paul  indicates  that  the  false  teachers  of  his  day  were  like 
in  nature  to  the  men  he  has  just  pictured;  and  he  further 
characterizes  them  as  those  “that  creep  into  houses,  and 
take  captive  silly  women  laden  with  sins,  led  away  by 
divers  lusts,  ever  learning,  and  never  able  to  come  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  truth.” 

Exponents  of  religious  error  always  find  their  easiest 
victims  among  a  certain  class  of  neurotic  and  sentimental 


II  Tim.,  ch.  3  DIFFICULT  DAYS  AHEAD 


115 


women,  who  love  secret  instruction  and  occult  solutions  of 
the  problems  of  sin  and  of  sorrow,  especially  such  as  are 
disturbed  by  guilt  of  conscience,  such  as  allow  their  emo¬ 
tions  to  control  their  reason  and  to  determine  their  morals, 
and  such  as  are  so  flattered  by  being  offered  “new  thought” 
that  they  are  blind  to  revealed  truth. 

Paul  finally  compares  the  teachers  of  error,  against  whom 
Timothy  was  warned,  with  Jannes  and  Jambres,  the  Egyp¬ 
tian  magicians  who  withstood  Moses  when  he  was  attempt¬ 
ing  to  convince  Pharaoh  of  the  power  of  God,  and  to  incline 
him  to  yield  to  the  will  of  God.  “So  do  these  also  with¬ 
stand  the  truth,”  declares  Paul,  and  he  further  describes 
them  as  “men  corrupted  in  mind,  reprobate  concerning 
the  faith,”  that  is,  men  who  are  morally  depraved  and 
devoid  of  all  real  knowledge  of  the  gospel.  However,  their 
defeat  is  certain,  for  as  Moses  discomfited  those  ancient 
impostors,  so  of  these  modern  enemies  of  God  Paul  de¬ 
clares,  “They  shall  proceed  no  further:  for  their  folly  shall 
be  evident  unto  all  men.” 

In  absolute  contrast  with  these  false  teachers,  Timothy 
is  given  the  inspiring  example  of  Paul,  and  i§  reminded 
that  he  has,  in  the  sacred  Scriptures,  a  safeguard  against 
all  the  influences  of  unsound  doctrine. 

The  opposition  of  unscrupulous  heretics  is  never  easy  to 
endure,  but  Timothy  is  reminded  of  Paul’s  sufferings  and 
deliverance  with  which  he  has  long  been  acquainted: 
“Thou  didst  follow  my  teaching,  conduct,  purpose,  faith, 
longsuffering,  love,  patience,  persecutions,  sufferings”;  he 
is  able  to  recall  how  the  faithful  apostle  had  been  driven 
out  of  Antioch  and  Iconium,  and  how  he  had  been  stoned 
at  Lystra  and  left  as  dead;  but  also  how  the  Lord  had 
rescued  him  and  had  preserved  him  amidst  all  these 
perils. 

Timothy  is  warned  that  he  must  expect  similar  experi¬ 
ences  if  he  is  to  be  loyal  to  the  truth;  suffering  is  the  com¬ 
mon  experience  of  all  faithful  ministers  of  the  gospel; 
Paul  even  adds,  “Yea,  and  all  that  would  live  godly  in 
Christ  Jesus  shall  suffer  persecution.” 


116 


SECOND  TIMOTHY 


II  Tim.,  ch.  3 


Timothy  need  not  expect  times  less  difficult  than  those 
in  which  Paul  has  lived:  “Evil  men  and  impostors  shall 
wax  worse  and  worse,  deceiving  and  being  deceived.” 
However,  Timothy  need  not  be  swerved  from  the  truth. 
He  is  exhorted  to  remain  steadfast  to  the  great  religious 
verities  which  he  has  been  taught,  and  he  is  encouraged  to 
such  fidelity  by  the  remembrance  of  the  mother  and  grand¬ 
mother,  by  whom,  during  his  childhood,  he  had  been  in¬ 
structed  in  the  sacred  writings.  He  has  further  been  taught 
the  gospel  message  by  his  beloved  teacher,  Paul.  The 
memory  of  those  who  have  led  him  into  the  full  knowledge 
of  the  truth  should  make  it  seem  to  him  more  and  more 
sacred.  Thus  Paul  reminds  Timothy  that  “from  a  babe” 
he  has  known  “the  sacred  writings”  which  pointed  him 
to  Christ,  through  faith  in  whom  Timothy  is  saved.  In 
the  face  of  all  false  doctrine  and  in  spite  of  the  influence  of 
false  teachers  of  religion,  Timothy  need  have  no  fear,  for  he 
is  in  possession  of  the  sacred  Scriptures  which  are  designed 
to  equip  him  for  life  and  service.  These  Scriptures,  Paul  de¬ 
clares,  are  “profitable  for  teaching,  for  reproof,  for  correc¬ 
tion,  for  instruction  which  is  in  righteousness.”  They  are 
designed,  indeed,  fully  to  equip  the  man  of  God  for  every 
good  work*. 

In  these  last  verses  many  readers  prefer  the  translation 
of  the  Authorized  Version  for  the  phrase,  “All  scripture  is 
given  by  inspiration  of  God,  and  is  profitable  for  .  .  . 
instruction,”  instead  of  the  rendering  of  the  Revision, 
“Every  scripture  inspired  of  God  is  also  profitable  for 
teaching,”  and  they  fear  that  the  latter  translation  im¬ 
pairs  the  evidence  for  the  inspiration  of  the  Bible.  How¬ 
ever,  while  according  to  the  former  translation,  inspiration 
is  affirmed,  according  to  the  latter,  it  is  assumed.  Here 
Paul  is  discussing  the  value  and  the  use  of  the  sacred 
writings.  Their  inspiration  is  not  called  in  question.  He 
has  been  saying  that  Timothy,  from  childhood,  has  known 
these  sacred  writings  which  can  make  him  “wise  unto 
salvation.”  He  then  adds  that  every  one  of  these  writings, 
by  which  he  means  every  part  of  these  inspired  Scriptures, 
is  also  profitable  for  such  moral  and  spiritual  discipline  as 
will  make  the  minister  of  the  gospel  completely  furnished 


II  Tim.,  ch.  3  DIFFICULT  DAYS  AHEAD 


117 


for  his  difficult  task.  Parallel  to  the  word  “writings”  is 
the  word  “scripture,”  and  corresponding  to  the  word 
“sacred”  is  the  phravSe  “inspired  of  God”;  and  as  in  the 
former  sentence,  the  sacred  writings  are  said  to  be  able  to 
make  one  “wise  unto  salvation,”  so  here  they  are  declared 
to  be  profitable  for  “teaching,  for  reproof,  for  correction, 
for  instruction  which  is  in  righteousness.” 

The  message  is  primarily  for  the  “man  of  God,”  the 
Christian  minister,  but  the  Scriptures  are  likewise  profit¬ 
able  for  all  the  followers  of  Christ;  and  if  Paul  could  make 
such  statements  in  reference  to  the  influence  of  the  Old 
Testament,  how  much  more  gladly  should  we  regard  the 
possible  influence  of  the  sacred  Scriptures  which  have 
come  to  us,  not  only  from  the  ancient  prophets  but  also 
from  the  apostles  of  our  Lord. 


118 


SECOND  TIMOTHY 


II  Tim.  4:  1-8 


C.  PAUL’S  APPROACHING  DEATH.  Ch.  4:  1-8 

1  I  charge  thee  in  the  sight  of  God,  and  of  Christ  Jesus, 
who  shall  judge  the  living  and  the  dead,  and  by  his  appearing 
and  his  kingdom :  2  preach  the  word ;  be  urgent  in  season,  out 
of  season ;  reprove,  rebuke,  exhort,  with  all  longsuffering  and 
teaching.  3  For  the  time  will  come  when  they  will  not  endure 
the  sound  doctrine;  but,  having  itching  ears,  will  heap  to 
themselves  teachers  after  their  own  lusts;  4  and  will  turn 
away  their  ears  from  the  truth,  and  turn  aside  unto  fables. 
5  But  be  thou  sober  in  all  things,  suffer  hardship,  do  the  work 
of  an  evangelist,  fulfil  thy  ministry.  6  For  I  am  already  being 
offered,  and  the  time  of  my  departure  is  come.  7  I  have 
fought  the  good  fight,  I  have  finished  the  course,  I  have  kept 
the  faith:  8  henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me  the  crown  of 
righteousness,  which  the  Lord,  the  righteous  Judge,  shall  give 
to  me  at  that  day ;  and  not  to  me  only,  but  also  to  all  them  that 
have  loved  his  appearing. 

Probably  no  passage  in  all  the  epistles  of  Paul  contains 
so  stirring  an  appeal  as  does  this  final  charge  to  Timothy, 
his  friend.  It  has  all  the  seriousness  of  a  last  farewell,  and 
it  is  made  e^’en  more  solemn  by  the  phrases  with  which  it 
is  introduced,  as  the  apostle  charges  Timothy  “in  the  sight 
of  God,”  and  also  “of  Christ  Jesus,”  of  whose  unseen  pres¬ 
ence  both  Paul  and  Timothy  are  conscious,  to  whom  both 
must  give  account  in  the  great  day  when  he  comes  to 
“judge  the  living  and  the  dead.”  At  the  time  of  that  com¬ 
ing  Timothy  possibly  may  be  living,  but  Paul  realizes  that 
he  himself  will  then  be  among  “  the  dead.”  By  that  glorious 
“appearing,”  and  by  the  perfected  “kingdom”  which  will 
follow,  Paul  adjures  Timothy  to  heed  this  last  command. 

It  is  a  twofold  charge  with  which  Paul  completes  this  let¬ 
ter,  and  each  part  of  it  is  enforced  by  the  consideration  of 
events  which  are  to  come.  The  first  group  of  commands 
is  found  in  the  second  verse  of  the  chapter;  it  is  summed 
up  largely  in  the  clause,  “Preach  the  word,”  and  it  is  re¬ 
lated  to  the  difficult  times  predicted  in  the  chapter  which 
precedes. 


II  Tim.  4:  1-8  PAUL’S  APPROACHING  DEATH  119 


The  second  part  of  this  final  charge  is  found  in  the  fifth 
verse.  It  reaches  its  climax  in  the  command,  “Fulfil  thy 
ministry,”  and  it  is  strengthened  by  definite  mention  of  the 
approaching  death  of  the  apostle. 

The  first  group  of  commands  is  especially  related  to  the 
last  half  of  the  epistle,  in  which  Paul  has  been  urging  Tim¬ 
othy  to  teach  sound  doctrine.  Thus  he  here  continues, 
“Preach  the  word;  be  urgent  in  season,  out  of  season;  re¬ 
prove,  rebuke,  exhort,  with  all  longsuffering  and  teaching.” 

These  five  imperatives  ring  out  with  the  directness  of 
military  commands.  Their  injunctions  must  be  obeyed  by 
every  loyal  minister  of  Christ  in  every  age  and  land.  The 
tense  in  which  these  words  appear  in  their  Greek  original 
implies  that  these  activities  are  to  continue  jight  up  to  the 
coming  of  the  Lord. 

“  Preach  the  word,”  that  is,  “the  word  of  God,”  the  gos¬ 
pel  of  grace,  the  good  news  of  his  redeeming  love,  the  truth 
recorded  for  us  in  the  sacred  Scriptures;  this,  and  not  hu¬ 
man  speculations,  is  the  great  message  which  every  herald 
of  the  cross  is  commissioned  to  proclaim. 

“Ee  urgent  in  season,  out  of  season”;  Paul  does  not 
mean  that  the  messenger,  in  the  urgency  of  his  appeal,  is 
to  be  inconsiderate  and  tactless,  but  he  is  not  to  consult 
merely  his  own  convenience,  not  to  preach  at  set  times 
only,  not  to  await  occasions  that  are  obviously  opportune. 
At  every  possible  season  he  must  be  eager  to  present  the 
Word  of  life. 

His  purpose  must  be  to  “reprove,  rebuke,  exhort,”  but 
his  spirit  must  be  that  of  great  forebearance  and  “long- 
suffering,”  and  his  method  must  be  that  of  “teaching,” 
which  means  that  he  will  give  grounds  for  correct  belief 
and  principles  for  right  action. 

t 

Such  teaching  in  accordance  with  “the  word”  is  urged 
in  view  of  the  difficult  days  concerning  which  Paul  previ¬ 
ously  has  spoken,  and  to  which  he  here  again  refers:  “For 
the  time  will  come  when  they  will  not  endure  the  sound 
doctrine;  but,  having  itching  ears,  will  heap  to  themselves 
teachers  after  their  own  lusts;  and  will  turn  away  their 
ears  from  the  truth,  and  turn  aside  unto  fables.” 


120 


SECOND  TIMOTHY 


II  Tim.  4;  1-8 


Thus  the  reasons  why  sound  doctrine  will  not  be  toler¬ 
able  are,  that  it  will  not  satisfy  the  craving  for  novelty  on  the 
part  of  the  hearers,  or  flatter  their  ^’anity,  or  condone  their 
faults;  therefore,  they  will  welcome  a  host  of  teachers  who 
will  offer  to  meet  their  religious  needs  without  insisting  upon 
morality;  consequently,  they  will  refuse  to  listen  to  the 
presentation  of  truth,  and  will  turn  aside  to  fantastic 
fables.  Those  who  willingly  reject  the  realities  of  revealed 
religion,  are  always  most  apt  to  become  the  dupes  of  im¬ 
postors  and  the  victims  of  frauds. 

In  view  of  such  coming  days  of  peril,  Timothy  is  urged 
to  be  alert  and  watchful;  he  must  be  ready  to  suffer  hard¬ 
ship  for  the  sake  of  the  gospel,  as  Paul  in  the  earlier  part  of 
the  letter  has  warned  him.  First,  he  is  to  do  “the  work  of 
an  evangelist”;  from  the  story  of  Philip  who  alone  in  the 
New  Testament  is  called  “the  evangelist”  we  may  con- 
clpde  that  the  term  did  not  imply  a  special  order  of  the 
ministry,  but  a  definite  kind  of  work,  particularly  preach¬ 
ing  to  the  unconverted;  so  that  this  exhortation  is  much 
*  like  saying  that  Timothy  and  his  fellow  ministers  are  not 
to  be  satisfied  with  mere  pastoral  duties  among  members 
of  their  own  flocks,  but  should  continually  be  seeking  for 
the  salvation  of  other  souls. 

Last  of  all,  Paul  urges  Timothy  to  “fulfil”  his  “minis¬ 
try,”  that  is,  to  accomplish  completely  his  sacred  task,  to 
perform  all  its  functions,  to  accept  all  its  duties,  to  realize 
all  its  possibilities,  to  be  faithful  to  all  its  demands. 

Such  is  the  last  charge  of  the  apostle  and  it  is  enforced 
by  the  solemn  announcement  of  his  approaching  death. 
“This,”  says  the  apostle  in  effect,  “is  the  special  reason 
for  your  being  faithful,  namely,  that  I  am  laying  down  the 
work ;  I  am  leaving  it  to  you,  by  whom  it  must  be  carried  on 
and  upon  whose  fidelity  its  success  must  depend.” 

“For  I  am  already  being  offered,”  writes  Paul,  indicat¬ 
ing  that  his  blood  is  about  to  be  poured  out  as  a  libation. 

“The  time  of  my  departure  is  come;”  here  one  is 
tempted  to  dwell  upon  the  picture  which  the  word  “depar¬ 
ture”  often  is  supposed  to  paint :  either  the  “loosing ”  of  the 


II  Tim.  4:  1-8  PAUL’S  APPROACHING  DEATH 


121 


cords  as  a  tent  is  taken  down,  or  the  “loosing”  of  a  ship 
from  her  moorings  as  she  sails  homeward  over  the  sea;  but 
in  the  time  of  Paul,  this  word  seems  to  have  been  used  with 
the  mere  meaning  of  a  “going  away.”  However,  this  is 
significant  enough  as  we  remember  what  this  “departure” 
signified  to  Paul  when  he  wrote  to  the  Philippians  of  his 
“desire  to  depart  and  be  with  Christ;  for  it  is  very  far 
better.” 

To  Paul  death  did  not  mean  the  cessation  of  conscious¬ 
ness,  nor  the  sleep  of  the  soul,  but  “to  be  absent  from  the 
body”  was  to  be  “at  home  with  the  Lord.” 

In  familiar  and  vivid  phrases  Paul  further  impresses  the 
fact  that  his  earthly  career  is  ended;  and  he  refers  to  that 
career,  not  merely  to  express  his  rightful  satisfaction,  but 
to  encourage  Timothy  to  follow  his  worthy  example.  “I 
have  fought  the  good  fight”;  here  the  figure  of  speech  is 
drawn  from  the  Greek  games.  Paul  is  saying,“I  have 
fought  through  the  glorious  contest;  my  life  has  been  a 
brave  struggle,  but  I  have  never  been  daunted  by  oppo¬ 
sition.” 

Or,  if  the  meaning  is  somewhat  more  general,  he  is  say¬ 
ing,  “I  have  striven  in  the  noble  contest,”  and  his  next 
allusion  is  specifically  to  one  stirring  event  in  the  games, 
namely,  the  foot  race,  as  he  declares,  “  I  have  finished  the 
course.”  Paul  surely  had  known  what  it  was  to  “lay  aside 
every  weight”  and  “  to  run  with  patience  the  race”  that 
was  set  before  him.  During  all  his  long  life  of  effort  there 
had  been  no  flagging  because  of  weariness  or  faintness  of 
heart. 

“I  have  kept  the  faith”;  he  is  here  stating  that  he  had 
received  the  gospel  as  a  sacred  deposit,  he  had  guarded  it 
with  ceaseless  care,  and  now  he  is  entrusting  it  to  Timo- 
othy  who  is  thus  encouraged  not  only  to  fight  manfully  and 
to  run  eagerly,  but  also,  as  the  figure  of  speech  changes  to 
one  which  Paul  had  used  earlier  in  the  letter,  to  guard 
“that  good  thing  which  was  committed”  to  him. 

Then  as  Paul  turns  from  the  past  to  the  future,  he  does 
so  with  the  confidence  of  a  conscious  victor  and  with  the 
assurance  of  one  who  knows  he  has  merited  a  reward: 


122 


SECOND  TIMOTHY 


II  Tim.  4:  1-8 


“Henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me  the  crown  of  right¬ 
eousness,  which  the  Lord,  the  righteous  judge,  shall  give 
to  me  at  that  day.”  He  had  alluded  to  the  Greek  games  in 
which  the  athletes  contested  for  crowns  of  laurel  or  of  pine. 
They  were  wont  to  strive  for  these  corruptible  crowns,  but 
Paul  was  assured  of  one  which  would  never  fade  away.  It 
was  a  “crown  of  righteousness”  by  which  many  under¬ 
stand  “a  crown  for  being  righteous,”  a  crown  as  a  reward 
for  zeal  and  for  fidelity. 

It  may  mean,  however,  a  crown  vdiich  will  consist  of 
that  perfect  “righteousness”  which  Paul  so  earnestly  had 
been  striving  to  attain.  This  meaning  would  be  in  accord 
with  the  common  New  Testament  usage,  the  “crown  of 
thorns,”  the  “crown  of  life,”  the  “crown  of  rejoicing,”  the 
“crown  of  glory;”  and  the  first  meaning  would  leave  this 
“  crown  ”  alone  without  any  description  as  to  its  character. 

It  might  be  possible  to  combine  these  two  ideas  as  is  done 
by  a  quaint  old  commentator  when  he  says,  “  It  is  called  a 
crown  of  righteousness,  because  it  will  be  a  recompense  of 
our  services  which  God  is  not  unrighteous  to  forget;  and 
because  our  holiness  and  righteousness  will  then  be  per¬ 
fected,  and  that  will  be  our  crown.” 

Paul  mentions  this  crown,  however,  not  in  the  spirit  of 
selfish  exultation;  like  all  the  preceding  statements,  this, 
too,  contains  encouragement  for  Timothy  to  live  as  Paul  has 
lived,  to  serve  as  he  has  served,  and  to  regard  death  as  he  re¬ 
gards  it;  for  the  apostle  adds  that  this  crown  is  not  for  him¬ 
self  alone,  not  only  for  great  saints  and  apostles  and  martyrs, 
but  also  for  “all  them  that  have  loved  his  appearing.” 
This  last  phrase  does  not  describe  any  one  class  of  Christ¬ 
ians  or  any  single  group  who  hold  special  views  as  to  the 
return  of  Christ.  Rather  Paul  indicates  that  to  love  the 
thought  of  the  glorious  appearing  of  our  Lord  is  a  natural 
characteristic  of  all  Christians.  His  spiritual  presence  is  to 
them  a  blessed  reality,  but  his  visible  appearance  in  glory 
is  their  constant  hope.  Paul  has  reached  a  time  when  he 
knows  that  he  must  pass  through  the  darkness  of  death; 
but  he  encourages  his  friends  to  believe  that  they  might  live 
until  the  Lord  returns. 


II  Tim.  4:  9-18  PERSONAL  MATTERS 


123 


IV.  Conclusion.  Ch.  4:  9-18 

A.  PERSONAL  MATTERS.  Ch.  4:9-18 

9  Give  diligence  to  come  shortly  unto  me:  10  for  Demas 
forsook  me,  having  loved  this  present  world,  and  went  to 
Thessalonica ;  Crescens  to  Galatia,  Titus  to  Dalmatia.  11 
Only  Luke  is  with  me.  Take  Mark,  and  bring  him  with  thee; 
for  he  is  useful  to  me  for  ministering.  12  But  Tychicus  I  sent 
to  Ephesus.  13  The  cloak  that  I  left  at  Troas  with  Carpus, 
bring  when  thou  comest,  and  the  books,  especially  the  parch¬ 
ments.  14  Alexander  the  coppersmith  did  me  much  evil:  the 
Lord  will  render  to  him  according  to  his  works :  15  of  whom  do 
thou  also  beware;  for  he  greatly  withstood  our  words.  16  At 
my  first  defence  no  one  took  my  part,  but  all  forsook  me:  may 
it  not  be  laid  to  their  account.  17  But  the  Lord  stood  by  me, 
and  strengthened  me ;  that  through  me  the  message  might  be 
fully  proclaimed,  and  that  all  the  Gentiles  might  hear:  and  I 
was  delivered  out  of  the  mouth  of  the  lion.  18  The  Lord  will 
deliver  me  from  every  evil  work,  and  will  save  me  unto  his 
heavenly  kingdom:  to  whom  be  the  glory  for  ever  and  ever. 
Amen. 

These  closing  sentences  paint  a  picture  in  view  of  which 
the  meaning  and  pathos  and  power  of  the  whole  epistle 
stand  out  in  clearer  light.  They  disclose  the  dank,  dark, 
cheerless  dungeon  in  which  the  letter  has  been  composed. 
They  reveal  the  great  apostle,  despised,  deserted,  yet  un¬ 
daunted  even  by  the  shadow  of  approaching  death,  and 
still  sustained  by  his  unconquerable  faith. 

They  introduce  characters  whose  familiar  forms  are  so 
associated  with  heroic  missionary  efforts  that  their  ap¬ 
pearance  enforces  the  great  exhortations  of  the  epistle  to 
be  steadfast  in  service  and  to  be  loyal  to  the  truth.  The 
names  of  the  heroes  who  were  among  the  closest  compan¬ 
ions  of  Paul  and  the  mention  of  Thessalonica,  Galatia, 
Ephesus,  Troas,  Corinth,  and  Miletus,  places  where  much 
of  his  most  notable  work  was  done,  open  up  great  vistas  of 
memory  and  make  these  closing  words  of  his  last  letter 
almost  a  compendium  of  his  life. 


124 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  4;  9-18 


Then,  further,  these  personal  references  a’-e  so  definite 
and  significant  as  to  demonstrate  beyond  reasv^nable  doubt 
that  these  Pastoral  Epistles  are  authentic  letters  of  the 
Apostle  Paul. 

First  of  all,  he  states  the  immediate  occasion  of  this 
letter:  it  is  his  desire  for  the  presence  of  Timothy:  “Give 
diligence  to  come  shortly  unto  me”;  or,  as  he  says  a  little 
later,  “give  diligence  to  come  before  winter.”  Paul  was 
lonely.  In  the  darkness  of  his  dungeon  he  longed  for  com¬ 
panionship.  No  doubt  he  desired  the  help  of  Timothy,  in 
his  care  for  the  churches  and  in  the  furtherance  of  the  work 
which  neither  bonds  nor  imprisonment  ever  stopped;  yet 
there  need  be  no  question  that  the  tender  heart  of  the 
great  apostle  yearned  for  sympathy  and  Christian  fellow¬ 
ship.  If  some  men  can  be  happy  without  friends,  surely 
Paul  was  not  one  of  these.  He  was  not  merely  a  man  of 
mighty  intellect,  but  a  man  of  deep  affection  and  of  tender 
emotions,  and  in  the  light  of  these  closing  sentences  we 
realize  that  this  last  letter  is  a  monument  of  his  love. 

He  explains  his  loneliness  and  the  urgency  of  his  sum¬ 
mons  by  telling  Timothy  of  the  dispersion  of  that  circle  of 
friends  who  for  a  time  had  cheered  the  darkness  of  his  dun¬ 
geon.  One  has  deserted  him ;  two  have  left  him  for  reasons 
which  he  does  not  name;  one  has  been  sent  by  him  to 
Ephesus.  “Give  diligence  to  come  shortly  unto  me:  for 
Demas  forsook  me,  having  loved  this  present  world,  and 
went  to  Thessalonica.”  Only  once  before  in  the  life  of  Paul 
has  Demas  appeared.  Then  he  was  sharing  an  earlier  im¬ 
prisonment  and  he  was  described  as  a  loyal  fellow  worker; 
in  two  epistles,  then  written,  his  name  was  honorably 
linked  with  that  of  “Luke,  the  beloved  physician.” 

That  Demas  had  become  an  apostate  from  the  Christian 
faith,  is  by  no  means  certain,  although  tradition  so  indicates. 
Probably  he  had  become  discouraged  by  hardships  and  had 
fled  from  Rome  at  a  time  when  the  persecution  under  Nero 
was  becoming  more  perilous.  It  is  enough  of  disgrace  that  he 
deserted  Paul  in  the  hour  of  direst  need. 

Paul  next  mentions  the  departure  of  “  Crescens  to  Galatia” 
and  of  “Titus  to  Dalmatia.”  Whether  they  had  been  dis- 


II  Tim.  4:  9-18  PERSONAL  MATTERS 


125 


patched  upon  honorable  missions,  or  had  decided  that  it 
would  be  wise  for  them  to  labor  in  fields  where  their  lives 
would  be  safer  than  in  Rome,  Paul  does  not  state.  It  is  not  to 
be  supposed,  however,  that  he  means  to  rank  them  with 
Demas  as  deserters.  Of  Crescens  nothing  else  is  known ;  but 
Titus  is  remembered  as  the  faithful  delegate  who  accom¬ 
plished  for  Paul  most  delicate  tasks  in  Corinth  and  in  Crete. 

“Only  Luke  is  with  me.”  It  might  be  difficult  to  de¬ 
termine  whether  this  phrase  depicts  more  vividly  the  lone¬ 
liness  of  Paul  or  the  heroism  of  Luke.  The  apostle  did  have 
other  friends  in  Rome  whom  later  he  mentions;  but  no  one 
else  was  willing  to  share  the  rigor  and  peril  of  his  imprison¬ 
ment.  However,  there  was  no  one  whom  Paul  would  have 
preferred  to  Luke.  Probably  no  lovelier  character  lived 
in  those  days  of  early  Christianity  than  this  “beloved 
physician”  whose  gospel  is  regarded  as  “the  most  beautiful 
book  in  the  world,”  whovse  book  of  The  Acts  constitutes  the 
most  fascinating  and  important  portion  of  Church  history, 
whose  care  for  the  great  apostle  seems  to  have  made  pos¬ 
sible  the  continuance  of  Paul’s  incomparable  work  as  they 
shared  the  perils  of  travel,  the  gloom  of  dungeons,  and  the 
glory  of  composing  masterpieces  of  literary  art.  In  this 
last  scene  of  Paul’s  life  nothing  could  be  more  fitting  than 
this  sketch  of  Luke,  amid  the  deepening  shadows,  standing 
steadfast  by  his  side. 

To  the  name  of  Luke,  Paul  now  adds  that  of  another 
Evangelist:  “Take  Mark,  and  bring  him  with  thee;  for  he 
is  useful  to  me  for  ministering.”  This  name  has  become  an 
inspiration  to  those  of  us  who  have  known  the  bitterness  of 
failure  in  the  service  of  Christ.  Here  is  a  man  whose  early 
life  had  been  marred  by  a  grievous  fault,  whose  companion¬ 
ship  Paul  consequently  had  spurned  as  that  of  a  coward 
and  a  deserter,  but  a  man  who  had  so  redeemed  his  reputa¬ 
tion  and  so  convinced  the  apostle  of  his  sincerity,  his  de¬ 
votion,  and  his  worth,  that  he  is  now  summoned  to  aid  Paul 
in  an  hour  of  supreme  danger,  and  in  circumstances  from 
which  other  friends  were  ready  to  flee. 

One  other  member  of  the  broken  circle  of  fellow  prison¬ 
ers  is  mentioned:  “Tychicus  I  sent  to  Ephesus.”  Tychicus 


126 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  4:  9-18 


belonged  to  the  province  of  Asia  in  which  Ephesus  was  lo¬ 
cated;  he  had  accompanied  Paul  on  his  last  journey  to 
Jerusalem;  he  had  shared  his  earlier  imprisonment  in  Rome, 
and  from  thence  had  carried  the  Epistles  to  the  Ephesians 
and  the  Colossians.  It  is  not  impossible  to  conclude  that 
he  was  to  bear  this  letter,  traveling  by  routes  which  had 
become  familiar  to  him  in  the  service  of  his  famous  friend. 

The  request  of  the  apostle  which  follows,  namely,  that 
when  coming,  Timothy  should  bring  with  him  the  heavy 
“cloak”  which  had  been  left  at  Troas,  and  also  the  papy¬ 
rus  “  books  ”  and  the  leather  “  parchments,  ”  sounds  a  note 
of  reality,  for  no  forger  would  have  inserted  here  such  a  re¬ 
quest;  it  adds  a  tender  touch  of  human  interest  and  enables 
us  to  see  the  aged  sufferer  in  the  damp  prison  cell,  shivering 
in  the  chill  of  an  approaching  winter;  but  it  flashes  a  fur¬ 
ther  light  upon  that  indomitable  spirit  who,  in  circum¬ 
stances  of  deepest  distress,  was  eager  to  continue  work 
with  his  manuscripts  and  books. 

Whom  Paul  had  in  mind  as  he  turned  to  warn  Timothy 
against  “Alexander  the  coppersmith,”  it  is  impossible  to 
learn;  nor  can  we  conjecture  the  particular  character  of  the 
offense  which  is  denounced.  Evidently  this  Alexander 
was  an  enemy  of  the  gospel,  and  yet  seemingly  one  who  was 
disguised,  for  Timothy  is  put  upon  his  guard  against  him. 
Of  his  ultim.ate  defeat  Paul  has  no  doubt:  “The  Lord  will 
render  to  him  according  to  his  works.”  The  great  apostle 
never  entertained  any  doubts  as  to  the  sovereignty  of  the 
Lord,  and  of  his  final  adjustment  of  penalties  and  rewards. 

The  apostle  next  describes  for  Timothy  the  experiences 
of  his  first  public  trial.  He  had  defended  himself  before, 
in  the  presence  of  august  courts  and  powerful  rulers,  but 
here  at  Rome  he  has  been  arraigned  before  an  imperial 
tribunal  at  the  very  capital  of  the  world,  and  at  this  time 
of  peril  and  need  he  has  been  made  to  stand  absolutely 
alone.  Those  upon  whose  support  and  aid  he  naturally 
might  have  relied,  have  forsaken  him  and  fled.  At  that 
time  even  Luke  may  not  have  been  in  Rome.  Why  his 


II  Tim.  4:  9-18  PERSONAL  MATTERS 


127 


friends  in  the  city  furnished  him  no  help  we  cannot  con¬ 
jecture.  However,  in  this  supreme  crisis  of  his  life,  in  his 
hour  of  greatest  need,  the  apostle  finds  himself  unbe¬ 
friended,  deserted,  with  no  comrade  or  helper  to  sympa¬ 
thize,  to  comfort,  or  to  sustain. 

Yet  he  was  not  alone.  By  his  side,  unseen  by  the  throng 
of  curious  spectators,  unperceived  by  his  malignant  foes, 
unimagined  by  his  imperial  judges,  there  stood  One  as  real 
to  Paul  as  his  very  self:  “The  Lord  stood  by  me.”  Nor 
was  this  Presence  a  mere  inactive  spirit;  he  manifested  his 
power  in  two  ways.  First,  he  so  strengthened  Paul  that  the 
apostle  gave  a  full  and  moving  proclamation  of  the  gospel 
of  Christ,  a  message  delivered  before  so  representative  an 
audience,  and  in  the  heart  of  the  imperial  city,  that  Paul 
could  say  truthfully,  he  had  been  strengthened  so  that 
“the  message  might  be  fully  proclaimed,  and  that  all  the 
Gentiles  might  hear.”  Instead  of  being  intimidated  and 
silenced  as  he  stood  before  the  judgment  seat  of  Nero, 
Paul  was  enabled  to  give  a  message  to  the  whole  world. 

There  was  a  second  result:  “I  was  delivered  out  of  the 
mouth  of  the  lion.”  No  special  enemy  is  here  denoted.  Paul 
means  merely  that  he  was  delivered  out  of  his  imminent 
peril;  he  was  neither  acquitted  nor  condemned,  but  death 
was  for  the  present  averted. 

Such  past  deliverance  gave  him  hope  for  the  future,  a 
hope  expressed  in  words  of  far-reaching  import:  “The  Lord 
will  deliver  me  from  every  evil  work,  and  will  save  me  unto 
his  heavenly  kingdom.”  Paul  does  not  believe  that  no 
physical  ill  can  befall  him,  but  he  is  confident  that  his  ene¬ 
mies  can  inflict  no  abiding  harm.  His  description  of  de¬ 
liverance  widens  out  to  the  statement  of  a  sublime  Chris¬ 
tian  confidence.  Nothing  can  permanently  injure  one  who 
belongs  to  Christ;  even  death  will  only  deliver  him  from 
suffering  and  bring  him  into  eternal  bliss.  No  wonder  that 
in  the  presence  of  such  a  Lord,  Paul  adds  this  doxology: 
“To  whom  be  the  glory  for  ever  and  ever.  Amen.” 


128 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  4:  19-22 


B.  SALUTATION  AND  BENEDICTION.  Ch.  4:  19-22 

19  Salute  Prisca  and  Aquila,  and  the  house  of  Onesiphorus. 
20  Erastus  remained  at  Corinth:  but  Trophimus  I  left  at 
Miletus  sick.  21  Give  diligence  to  come  before  winter. 
Eubulus  saluteth  thee,  and  Pudens,  and  Linus,  and  Claudia, 
and  all  the  brethren. 

22  The  Lord  be  with  thy  spirit.  Grace  be  with  you. 

Paul  sends  a  closing  salutation  to  Prisca  (or  Priscilla)  and 
Aquila,  and  to,  “the  house  of  Onesiphorus.”  The  latter 
Christian  household  has  been  mentioned  by  Paul  with  deep 
affection  in  an  earlier  part  of  his  epistle;  it  is  only  natural 
that  in  dispatching  the  letter  to  Ephesus  he  should  include 
this  loving  farewell. 

As  for  Prisca  and  Aquila,  they  had  been  his  fast  friends 
since  those  days  he  lived  with  them  iji  Corinth,  days  of 
discouragement  and  ultimate  triumph  when  he  was  found¬ 
ing  the  Christian  Church  in  that  great  commercial  capital. 
It  may  have  been  then,  under  his  influence,  they  first  ac¬ 
cepted  Christ.  They  were  Jews  by  birth  and  came  from 
Pontus.  More  than  once  they  had  resided  in  Rome,  where, 
as  at  Ephesus,  they  had  been  of  great  help  to  Paul.  As  at 
this  time  they  again  were  in  Ephesus,  Paul  gladly  accepts 
the  opportunity  of  sending  them  an  affectionate  remem¬ 
brance. 

From  two  other  companions  of  the  apostle,  Timothy 
might  have  expected  salutations,  and  therefore  Paul  ex¬ 
plains:  “Erastus  remained  at  Corinth:  but  Trophimus  I 
left  at  Miletus  sick.”  It  cannot  be  determined  whether 
this  Erastus  is  to  be  identified  either  with  the  treasurer  of 
Corinth,  Rom.  16:  23,  or  with  the  messenger  sent  by  Paul 
to  Macedonia,  Acts  19:22. 

Trophimus  was  probably  the  Ephesian  who  had  traveled 
with  Paul  on  his  third  missionary  journey.  That  Paul  was 
compelled  to  leave  him  “at  Miletus  sick”  would  seem  to 
indicate  that  even  Christians  cannot  always  claim  by 


II  Tim.  4:  19-22 


BENEDICTION 


129 


faith  deliverance  from  disease,  and  that  even  the  chief 
apostle  could  not  cure  a  suffering  friend.  In  sickness  and 
in  health  our  prayer  must  be,  ‘'The  will  of  the  Lord  be 
done.” 

After  these  personal  greetings  Paul  again  states  the 
prime  purpose  of  his  epistle,  which  is  to  summon  Timothy 
to  Rome:  ‘‘Give  diligence  to  come  before  winter,”  that  is, 
‘‘before  you  may  be  prevented  by  storms,  before  I  may  be 
in  greater  need  of  the  cloak  you  are  to  bring,  before  my 
next  summons  to  stand  before  the  judgment  seat  of  Nero.” 
It  is  a  pathetic  appeal,  but  its  chief  interest  lies  in  the 
question  which  it  naturally  raises,  namely,  did  Timothy 
reach  Rome,  in  reply  to  this  appeal,  before  Paul  was  con¬ 
demned  and  executed?  So  it  would  seem;  for  otherwise 
Timothy  might  not  have  suffered  the  experience  of  im¬ 
prisonment  to  which  reference  is  made  in  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews,  Heb.  13:  23.  His  visit  to  Paul  may  have  been 
the  occasion  of  his  arrest.  He  probably  shared  with  the 
apostle  that  captivity  from  which  other  friends  shrank. 
Thus  we  may  believe  that  during  his  last  days  Paul  was 
solaced  by  the  sympathetic  presence  of  the  two  men  he 
most  truly  loved,  Luke  and  Timothy,  and  also  by  the 
faithful  and  efficient  service  of  Mark. 

There  were  other  friends,  too,  who  on  occasion  found 
access  to  his  dungeon,  residents  of  Rome  and  representa¬ 
tives  of  that  large  circle  of  Christians  who  held  Paul  in 
reverent  regard.  From  them  he  sends  greetings  through 
Timothy:  ‘‘Eubulus  saluteth  thee,  and  Pudens,  and  Linus, 
and  Claudia,  and  all  the  brethren.”  Of  the  persons  here 
named  nothing  further  is  known,  unless  this  Linus  is  he 
who,  according  to  tradition,  was  appointed  as  bishop  of 
Rome  in  the  days  of  the  early  simplicity  of  that  sacred 
office.  The  mention  of  his  name  and  those  of  his  associ¬ 
ates  gives  another  proof  of  historic  reality  to  this  letter ;  and 
the  absence  of  all  mention  of  the  official  position  of  Linus 
indicates  that  these  words  must  have  been  written  at  the 
early  date  commonly  assigned  to  this  epistle.  We  are, 
therefore,  still  further  assured  that  we  are  reading  here  the 
last  authentic  words  of  the  Apostle  Paul. 


130 


SECOND  TIMOTHY  II  Tim.  4:  19-22 


The  closing  benediction,  “The  Lord  be  with  thy  spirit. 
Grace  be  with  you,”  is  an  example  of  the  wealth  of  meaning 
hidden  from  such  readers  of  the  English  Bible  as  fail  to 
understand  its  careful  use  of  pronouns;  for  as  “thy”  is  of 
course  singular  and  denotes  only  one  person,  “you”  is 
always  plural,  and  here  indicates  the  whole  Christian  con¬ 
gregation  at  Ephesus.  Thus  we  are  reminded  again  that 
these  Pastoral  Epistles  were  not  mere  personal  letters  to  in¬ 
dividuals  but  conveyed  messages  through  representative 
ministers,  to  the  Christians  under  their  care. 

For  Timothy,  Paul  invokes  the  blessings  of  his  ever¬ 
present  Lord,  and  prays  that  divine  grace  may  be  granted 
to  sustain  and  keep  the  whole  congregation  of  believers. 
This  grace  supported  Paul,  as  a  little  later  he  was  led  forth 
to  die,  and  it  surely  will  suffice  for  all  who  serve  and  trust 
his  Master  and  his  Lord. 


THE  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO 
TITUS 


Titus  and  Timothy  were  closely  associated  as  compan¬ 
ions  and  helpers  of  Paul.  Both  were  trusted  and  loved  by 
him  and  both  proved  worthy  of  his  confidence  and  esteem. 
They  seem,  however,  to  have  been  men  of  strikingly  con¬ 
trasted  character.  Timothy  was  sensitive,  affectionate, 
sympathetic,  and  gentle.  Titus  revealed  more  of  energy, 
of  vigor,  of  discretion,  and  of  decision. 

The  life  of  Titus  is  not  sketched  for  us  by  the  historian  - 
Luke.  In  fact  the  name  does  not  appear  in  The  Acts.  Yet 
the  brief  references  made  to  Titus  by  Paul  in  his  epistles 
are  so  significant  that  his  personality  and  his  career  stand 
vividly  before  us;  he  was  true  to  his  great  leader  and  ren¬ 
dered  him  valiant  service,  and  in  return  he  received 
through  the  pen  of  the  apostle  an  immortality  of  fame. 

He  first  appears,  in  the  sacred  story,  at  Antioch.  He  is 
described  as  a  Gentile,  a  Greek,  who  had  been  converted 
to  faith  in  Christ  by  the  personal  influence  of  Paul.  Cer¬ 
tain  Jewish  Christians  were  endeavoring  to  make  him 
observe  the  law  of  Moses,  and  were  insisting  that  such 
observance  was  necessary  to  salvation.  It  was  in  order  to 
decide  this  very  question  which  had  arisen  in  reference  to 
all  Gentile  converts  that  Paul,  in  company  with  Titus  and 
other  representatives  of  the  church  at  Antioch,  went  to 
Jerusalem,  as  a  delegate  to  the  great  council.  Here,  for  a 
time,  the  battle  raged  about  Titus;  but  the  decision  was 
finally  reached  which  granted  to  Christians  for  all  time 
freedom  from  the  law  as  a  ground  of  salvation.  Thus  the 
name  of  Titus  is  inseparably  connected  with  the  "Magna 
Charta”  of  Christian  liberty;  and  it  is  further  a  reminder 
of  the  strange  contrasts  which  the  ages  have  produced, 
that  while  Jewish  converts  once  questioned  the  possibility 
of  salvation  for  Gentiles,  now  many  Gentile  Christians 
seem  to  question  the  possibility  or  the  need  of  securing 
converts  from  among  the  Jews 

131 


132 


THE  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO  TITUS 


While  Paul  was  on  his  Third  Missionary  Journey,  during 
his  long  stay  at  Ephesus,  Titus  was  his  trusted  lieutenant 
and  messenger  and  served  as  his  representative  in  dealing 
with  a  number  of  difficult  matters,  notably  those  in  con¬ 
nection  with  the  church  at  Corinth. 

If  the  nature  of  tasks  assigned  is  ever  a  compliment  to 
the  capacity  of  a  worker,  it  was  certainly  such  in  the  case 
of  the  missions  which  Titus  was  asked  to  accomplish  for 
Paul. 

The  Corinthian  Christians  were  divided  by  a  spirit  of 
faction;  they  were  countenancing  gross  immorality;  they 
were  allowing  irreverence  in  their  public  services;  they 
were  perplexed  by  false  teaching.  To  correct  such  irregu¬ 
larities  and,  in  addition,  to  collect  a  fund  for  the  relief  of 
the  ‘‘saints”  in  Jerusalem,  Titus  was  dispatched  to  Cor¬ 
inth  by  Paul  on  at  least  two  occasions. 

That  he  succeeded  on  such  delicate  and  intricate  mis¬ 
sions  is  the  highest  possible  tribute  to  his  tact  and  courage 
and  strength.  The  Second  Epistle  of  Paul  to  the  Corin¬ 
thians  is  full  of  expressions  indicating  the  regard  in  which 
Titus  was  held  by  those  Christians,  his  own  sympathy  and 
enthusiasm  for  them,  as  well  as  the  gratitude  and  affection 
of  Paul  for  Titus.  The  next  and  greatest  tribute  to  the 
fidelity  of  Titus  is  this  epistle  which  bears  his  name,  and 
which  he  received  from  the  great  apostle  while  serving  as 
his  delegate  and  representative  in  the  island  of  Crete. 

This  island,  which  occupied  a  favorable  position  in  the 
center  of  the  Mediterranean,  had  attained,  in  days  of  re¬ 
mote  antiquity,  a  brilliant  and  glorious  civilization;  but, 
for  some  reason,  this  civilization  had  declined,  and,  in  the 
time  of  Augustus,  the  inhabitants  of  Crete  were  crude  and 
barbarous,  and  were  regarded  with  aversion  and  con¬ 
tempt. 

When  Paul  was  on  his  way  to  Rome  as  a  prisoner,  the 
ill-fated  ship  on  which  he  was  sailing  touched  at  a  Cretan 
port,  but  later  was  driven  from  the  island  by  a  severe 
storm  and  subsequently  wrecked.  The  voyagers  were  res¬ 
cued,  Paul  was  brought  to  Rome,  but  after  an  imprison¬ 
ment  of  some  two  years,  it  seems  that  he  was  released,  and 
resumed  his  missionary  journeys. 


THE  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO  TITUS 


133 


He  recognized  the  character  of  the  Cretans,  but  believed 
that  they  should  receive  the  gospel  quite  as  well  as  the 
cultured  residents  of  Athens  and  Rome.  Taking  Titus  as 
his  companion,  he  visited  Crete.  Quite  possibly  Christian¬ 
ity  had  been  established  on  the  island  already,  for  Cretans 
were  among  the  multitudes  who  had  received  the  gospel 
from  the  lips  of  Peter  on  the  day  of  Pentecost.  Under  the 
influence  of  Paul  the  Christian  movement,  if  not  actually 
begun,  was  fostered  and  strengthened.  However,  before 
the  work  of  organization  was  complete,  Paul  was  called  to 
Greece  and  Macedonia.  He  therefore  left  behind  him  in 
Crete  his  trusted  friend,  Titus,  to  carry  forward  the  work 
and  to  appoint  oflicers  in  the  churches  throughout  the 
island.  Some  time  after  his  departure,  Paul  wrote  back 
this  letter  to  Titus,  specifying  the  proper  character  of  such 
church  officials,  urging  Titus  to  rebuke  false  teachers,  to 
exhort  believers  of  all  classes  to  lives  of  holiness  consistent 
with  their  Christian  profession,  and  to  act  firmly  toward  all 
who  held  and  fostered  heresies. 

The  letter  served  as  a  message  of  commendation  for 
Zenas  and  Apollos  by  whom,  possibly,  it  was  conveyed  to 
Titus.  Its  special  message,  however,  was  to  the  effect  that 
on  the  arrival  of  Artemas  or  Tychicus,  Titus  should  leave 
Crete  and  should  join  Paul  at  Nicopolis.  Apparently,  this 
reunion  was  enjoyed,  for  when,  a  little  later,  Paul  was  a 
second  time  imprisoned,  he  wrote  to  Timothy  of  the  de¬ 
parture  of  “Titus  to  Dalmatia.”  We  should  not  suppose 
that  this  was  a  desertion  of  Paul  by  Titus,  but  rather  that 
he  had  gone  to  another  mission  field,  and  a  field  again  of  pe¬ 
culiar  peril  and  difficulty.  This,  at  least,  is  the  last  mention 
of  that  comrade  who  was  so  dear  to  the  great  apostle  as  to  be 
called  his  “partner”  and  “fellow- worker,”  his  “brother,” 
his  “true  child.” 

This  particular  letter,  written  by  Paul  to  Titus  in  Crete, 
is  therefore  a  pastoral  epistle,  inasmuch  as  it  is  not  merely 
a  personal  communication;  it  is  an  official  note  'addressed 
to  a  representative  of  the  apostle,  and  intended  to  convey 
through  him  a  message  to  the  whole  church. 

Like  the  other  Pastoral  Epistles,  it  has  three  great 


134 


THE  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO  TITUS 


themes:  Church  organization,  sound  doctrine,  holy  living. 
These  three  always  have  a  definite  logical  relation,  and  they 
are  here  discussed  in  practically  this  order.  The  very  pur¬ 
pose  of  Paul  when  leaving  Titus  in  Crete  was  to  complete 
the  work  of  organization  and  to  “appoint  elders  in  every 
city.”  Elders  are  the  only  officers  mentioned.  They  were 
evidently  the  spiritual  rulers  and  leaders  and  teachers  of 
the  local  congregatipns.  Their  chief  task  was  “to  exhort 
in  the  sound  doctrine,  and  to  convict  the  gainsayers.” 
Thus,  here,  as  ever,  Paul  indicates  that  the  supreme  aim  of 
Church  government  is  the  preservation  of  revealed  truth. 

This  truth  is  here  designated  by  a  number  of  striking 
phrases,  as  “the  message,”  the  “faithful  word,”  “the  faith 
of  God’s  elect,”  “the  truth”;  but  the  characteristic  des¬ 
ignation  is  that  of  “sound  doctrine,”  or  “healthful  teach¬ 
ing.”  This  word  “sound”  is  really  a  medical  term,  and 
indicates  doctrine  which  is  free  from  all  taint  and  disease. 
Evidently  the  Cretan  church  was  already  imperiled  by 
unsound  doctrine,  by  false  teaching.  This  was  due  to  the 
influence  of  certain  errorists,  particularly  of  Jewish  origin, 
whom  Paul  designates  as  “gainsayers,”  “unruly  men,  vain 
talkers  and  deceivers,”  “factious”  men  who  concerned 
themselves  about  “foolish  questionings,  and  genealogies, 
and  strifes,  and  fightings  about  the  law.”  The  influence  of 
such  men  must  be  opposed  by  “sound”  teaching,  and  at 
least  five  times  in  this  brief  letter  Paul  employs  this  signifi¬ 
cant  term. 

Furthermore,  Paul  gives  to  Titus,  if  quite  incidentally, 
statements  of  the  essential  content  of  the  truths  which  con¬ 
stitute  “sound  teaching.”  Twice  in  the  course  of  the  epis¬ 
tle,  Paul  introduces  such  summaries  of  the  Christian  faith. 

One  is  in  the  second  chapter :  “  For  the  grace  of  God  hath 
appeared,  bringing  salvation  to  all  men,  instructing  us,  to 
the  intent  that,  denying  ungodliness  and  worldly  lusts,  we 
should  live  soberly  and  righteously  and  godly  in  this  pres¬ 
ent  world;  looking  for  the  blessed  hope  and  appearing  of 
the  glory  of  the  great  God  and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.” 
Ch.  2.  11-13. 

Another  such  summary  of  truth,  likewise  hardly  sur¬ 
passed  for  beauty  and  completeness,  is  found  in  the  third 


THE  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO  TITUS 


135 


chapter:  But  when  the  kindness  of  God  our  Saviour,  and 
his  love  toward  man,  appeared,  not  by  works  done  in 
righteousness,  which  we  did  ourselves,  but  according  to 
his  mercy  he  saved  us,  through  the  washing  of  regeneration 
and  renewing  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  which  he  poured  out  upon 
us  richly,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour;  that,  being 
justified  by  his  grace,  we  might  be  made  heirs  according  to 
the  hope  of  eternal  life.  Faithful  is  the  saying,  and  con¬ 
cerning  these  things  I  desire  that  thou  affirm  confidently, 
to  the  end  that  they  who  have  believed  God  may  be  care¬ 
ful  to  maintain  good  works.  These  things  are  good  and 
profitable  unto  men.” 

Paul  speaks  with  no  uncertain  sound.  To  him  the  sub¬ 
stance  of  the  Christian  revelation  is  definite,  clear,  un¬ 
questioned.  The  very  fact  that  these  statements  are  not 
part  of  a  formal  argument  but  spring  from  the  general 
train  of  thought,  in  an  epistle  of  practical  instruction, 
makes  them  even  more  impressive  as  an  expression  of  what 
to  the  mind  of  Paul  constituted  “sound  doctrine.” 

However,  “sound  doctrine”  is  never  regarded  by  the 
apostle  as  an  end  in  itself.  Truth,  according  to  Paul,  is 
always  intended  to  determine  life  and  to  promote  godliness. 
Therefore  the  supreme  purpose  of  the  epistle  is  to  secure 
holy  living. 

If  the  organization  is  designated  largely  by  the  appoint¬ 
ment  of  “elders,”  and  if  the  truth  is  expressed  in  the  phrase 
“sound  teaching,”  the  life  to  be  developed  is  described 
quite  as  definitely  by  two  phrases,  “good  works”  and 
“sober-mindedness.”  The  latter  word,  in  several  forms, 
appears  likewise  five  times  in  the  course  of  the  letter.  It  is 
an  extremely  beautiful  term.  It  denotes  not  sadness  or 
gloominess  of  disposition  but  self-restraint,  temperance, 
discretion,  and  general  excellence  of  character  as  revealed 
in  practical  conduct.  That  believers  of  all  ages  and  classes 
may  be  thus  sober-minded,  and  that  they  may  be  “  zealous 
of  good  works,”  is  the  supreme  purpose  of  Paul  in  sending 
this  letter  to  Titus. 

The  order  of  thought  is  not  studied  and  formal,  but  its 
general  course  may  be  indicated  by  the  following  outline: 


136 


THE  EPISTLE  OF  PAUL  TO  TITUS 


I.  Salutation.  Titus  1:  1-4. 

II.  Discussion.  Chs.  1 :  5  to  3  : 11. 

A.  Qualifications  of  Elders— In  View  of  the  Conditions 
in  Crete.  Ch.  1 : 5-16 

B.  Conduct  Among  Christians— In  View  of  the  Saving 
Purpose  of  God.  Ch.  2. 

C.  Conduct  Toward  Unbelievers— In  View  of  the  Sav¬ 
ing  Mercy  of  God.  Ch.  3:  1-11 

III.  Conclusion.  Ch.  3  :  12-15. 


Titus  1 :  1-4 


SALUTATION 


137 


I.  Salutation.  Titus  1:1-4 

1  Paul,  a  servant  of  God,  and  an  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ, 
according  to  the  faith  of  God’s  elect,  and  the  knowledge  of  the 
truth  which  is  according  to  godliness,  2  in  hope  of  eternal  life, 
which  God,  who  cannot  lie,  promised  before  times  eternal; 
3  but  in  his  own  seasons  manifested  his  word  in  the  message, 
wherewith  I  was  intrusted  according  to  the  commandment  of 
God  our  Saviour;  4  to  Titus,  my  true  child  after  a  common 
faith:  Grace  and  peace  from  God  the  Father  and  Christ  Jesus 
our  Saviour. 

In  reference  to  the  Pastoral  Epistles  of  Paul  it  has  been 
said  truly  that  “these  letters  supply  the  practical  test  of 
inspiration,  namely,  their  field  of  matter  for  thought  is 
never  exhausted  by  study.”  This  is  evident  when  examin¬ 
ing  even  the  brief  clauses  which  constitute  the  personal 
salutations  which  open  these  epistles.  They  are  found  to 
be  not  mere  empty  formulas;  they  contain  statements  of 
important  facts  worthy  of  most  careful  consideration. 

Each  of  these  salutations  differsfrom  the  others, and  com¬ 
monly  contains  phrases  carefully  chosen  in  reference  to  the 
occasion  and  purpose  of  the  particular  letter,  so  that  the 
opening  greeting  constitutes  an  appropriate  introduction 
to  the  epistle. 

Paul  does  not  explain  his  personal  circumstances,  nor 
those  of  the  readers  he  addresses.  It  appears  from  further 
statements  in  the  letter  that  he  is  on  a  missionary  journey 
which  has  included  a  stay  on  the  great  island  of  Crete,  and 
which  has  since  taken  him  to  Greece  and  Macedonia.  As 
there  is  no  place  for  such  a  journey  in  the  story  of  his  life 
as  recorded  by  Luke  in  The  Acts,  it  appears  that  he  must 
have  been  released  from  the  imprisonment  with  which  The 
Acts  closes  and  have  enjoyed  a  season  of  active  ministry 
before  the  confinement  at  Rome  where  he  wrote  his  last 
letter  to  Timothy.  The  place  of  this  letter,  in  order  of 
time,  therefore,  is  between  the  First  and  the  Second  Epis¬ 
tles  to  Timothy. 


'138 


TITUS 


Titus  1 : 1-4 


Paul  designates  himself  as  “a  servant  of  God,”  literally, 
a  “bondservant,”  or  “slave.”  This  exact  expression  Paul 
uses  in  no  other  place.  He  usually  says  that  he  is  a  “serv¬ 
ant  of  Jesus  Christ.”  It  is  only  a  slight  change,  but  cer¬ 
tainly  a  change  which  no  forger  would  have  made,  had  he 
desired  to  write^  a  letter  in  the  name  of  the  great  apostle. 
It  is  one  of  the  many  proofs  that  we  have  here  a  genuine 
letter  of  which  Paul  was  the  author,  and  it  sounds  out  this 
assurance  in  the  first  sentence  of  the  epistle. 

Paul  further  declares  himself  to  be  “an  apostle  of  Jesus 
Christ”;  for  his  service  of  God  is  being  rendered  in  the 
sphere  of  his  Christian  apostleship.  This  apostleship  is 
said  to  be  “according  to  the  faith  of  God’s  elect,”  that  is, 
with  a  view  to  the  establishment  and  confirmation  of  the 
faith  of  the  people  whom  God  has  chosen,  by  which  latter 
term  Paul  commonly  defines  the  Church. 

This  apostleship,  further,  is  declared  to  be  for  the  pur¬ 
pose  of  extending  and  enforcing  “the  truth  which  is  ac¬ 
cording  to  godliness.”  This  “truth”  is  none  other  than 
the  Christian  gospel  which  has  as  its  aim  the  promotion 
of  godliness,  and  which  is  sought  and  accepted  by  those 
who  truly  love  and  serv^e  God. 

This  apostleship  is  exercised  and  this  faith  and  knowl¬ 
edge  are  experienced  “in  hope  of  eternal  life,  which  God, 
who  cannot  lie,  promised  before  times  eternal.”  Christian 
faith  and  knowledge  have  therefore  a  superb  accompani¬ 
ment  of  hope,  which  reaches  back  to  the  eternal  promise  of  a 
God  who  cannot  be  false  to  his  own  word,|and  forward  to  the 
enjoyment  of  the  eternal  life  which  he  has  provided  through 
Jesus  Christ. 

This  gracious  purpose  and  promise  God  has  manifested 
“in  his  own  seasons,”  in  the  gospel,  “his  word,”  even  in 
the  “message,”  or  “proclamation,”  intrusted  to  Paul, 
“according  to  the  commandment  of  God.” 

After  thus  defining  his  apostleship,  Paul  expresses  his 
greeting  to  Titus,  whom  he  calls  “my  true  child  after  a 
common  faith.”  The  expression  may  mean  that  Titus  had 
been  led  to  accept  the  Christian  faith  by  the  influence  of 
Paul;  it  may  further  indicate  the  comparative  youth  of 


Titus  1:  1-4 


SALUTATION 


139 


Titus;  but  it  is  surely  an  expression  of  tender  affection,  of 
close  spiritual  relationship,  and  of  deep  sympathy.  For 
Titus,  Paul  invokes,  “Grace  and  peace  from  God  the 
Father  and  Christ  Jesus  our  Saviour.”  Just  previously 
Paul  has  used  the  beautiful  phrase,  “God  our  Saviour,” 
so  that  “Christ  Jesus  our  Saviour”  is  united  with  the 
Father  in  the  oneness  of  divine  being  as  well  as  of  saving 
grace. 

It  will  be  noted,  then,  that  in  at  least  two  particulars 
this  “salutation”  to  Titus  forms  a  fitting  introduction  to 
this  particular  epistle.  First,  it  emphasizes  the  authority 
of  Paul,  as  one  who  is  a  “servant  of  God,”  “an  apostle  of 
Christ,”  and  entrusted  with  a  divine  message  “according 
to  the  commandment  of  God.”  This  emphasis  indicates 
that  Paul  is  not  merely  writing  a  personal  letter  to  his 
friend  Titus,  but  also  is  sending  an  official  communication 
to  him  as  one  in  charge  of  the  congregation  in  Crete,  so 
that  this  is  in  the  truest  sense  one  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles. 
This  emphasis  is  even  stronger  than  in  the  introduction 
to  First  or  Second  Timothy,  possibly  because  Paul  was 
less  well  known  to  the  Christians  of  Crete  than  to  those  of 
Ephesus.  In  any  event,  his  words,  which  reached  them 
through  Titus,  would  be  received  with  the  respect  and  con¬ 
sideration  due  to  a  divinely  appointed  apostle  of  Christ. 

In  the  second  place,  such  a  greeting  is  an  appropriate 
introduction  to  the  epistle  because  it  describes  the  gospel 
message  in  terms  fitting  the  situation  in  Crete.  The 
truth  is  declared  to  be  “according  to  godliness”;  it  was 
unlike  the  heresies  of  the  false  teachers  which  were  purely 
speculative  and  without  practical  aim  or  moral  purpose. 
Further,  in  contrast  to  the  deceitfulness  of  the  Cretans 
and  the  faithlessness  of  those  who  were  advocating  error, 
the  hope  of  eternal  life  was  promised  by  “God,  who  cannot 
lie.” 

Thus,  as  through  the  entire  letter,  official  authority  in 
the  church  is  declared  to  have  as  its  purpose  the  preserva¬ 
tion  and  proclamation  of  the  revealed  truth  contained  in 
the  gospel,  and,  further,  “sound  doctrine”  is  ever  in¬ 
tended  to  secure  holy  living;  its  supreme  purpose  is  the 
promotion  of  godliness. 


140 


TITUS 


Titus  1 : 5-16 


II.  Discussion.  Chs.  1  :5  to3  :  11 

A.  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  ELDERS— IN  VIEW  OF  THE 
CONDITIONS  IN  CRETE.  Ch.  1:5-16 

5  For  this  cause  left  I  thee  in  Crete,  that  thou  shouldest  set 
in  ordei  the  things  that  were  wanting,  and  appoint  elders  in 
every  city,  as  I  gave  thee  charge ;  6  if  any  man  is  blameless, 
the  husband  of  one  wife,  having  children  that  believe,  who  are 
not  accused  of  riot  or  unruly.  7  For  the  bishop  must  be 
blameless,  as  God’s  steward;  not  self-willed,  not  soon  angry, 
no  brawler,  no  striker,  not  greedy  of  filthy  lucre ;  8  but  given  to 
hospitality,  a  lover  of  good,  sober-minded,  just,  holy,  self- 
controlled  ;  9  holding  to  the  faithful  word  which  is  according 
to  the  teaching,  that  he  may  be  able  both  to  exhort  in  the 
sound  doctrine,  and  to  convict  the  gainsayers. 

10  For  there  are  many  unruly  men,  vain  talkers  and  de¬ 
ceivers,  specially  they  of  the  circumcision,  11  whose  mouths 
must  be  stopped;  men  who  overthrow  whole  houses,  teaching 
things  which  they  ought  not,  for  filthy  lucre’s  sake.  12  One  of 
themselves,  a  prophet  of  their  own,  said, 

Cretans  are  always  liars,  evil  beasts,  idle  gluttons. 

13  This  testimony  is  true.  For  which  cause  reprove  them 
sharply,  that  they  may  be  sound  in  the  faith,  14  not  giving 
heed  to  Jewish  fables,  and  commandments  of  men  who  turn 
away  from  the  truth.  15  To  the  pure  all  things  are  pure:  but  to 
them  that  are  defiled  and  unbelieving  nothing  is  pure ;  but  both 
their  mind  and  their  conscience  are  defiled.  16  They  profess 
that  they  know  God;  but  by  their  works  they  deny  him,  being 
abominable,  and  disobedient,  and  unto  every  good  work 
reprobate. 

Such  a  passage  impresses  the  most  casual  reader  with 
the  fact  that  Church  organization  is  a  matter  of  vital  im¬ 
portance.  There  may  be  wide  differences  of  opinion  as  to 
its  exact  form  or  as  to  the  details  in  its  system  of  govern¬ 
ment,  but  it  is  obviously  quite  in  accordance  with  the  di¬ 
vine  will  that  properly  qualified  men  should  be  selected  for 
the  spiritual  oversight  of  the  congregations  of  believers  and 
for  their  instruction  in  revealed  truth. 

Thus  when  Paul  had  secured  a  large  number  of  converts 


Titus  1:5-16  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  ELDERS 


141 


in  all  the  cities  of  Crete,  but  had  been  called  away  before 
the  task  of  consolidating  his  work  was  complete,  he  left 
behind  him  his  trusted  companion  Titus,  to  gather  the 
believers  into  churches  and  to  effect  an  organization  by 
securing  for  each  of  these  congregations  a  board  of  “eld¬ 
ers,”  or  “presbyters,”  as  Paul  declares  in  this  letter  which 
he  writes  back  to  Titus:  “For  this  cause  left  I  thee  in 
Crete,  that  thou  shouldest  set  in  order  the  things  that  were 
wanting,  and  appoint  elders  in  every  city,  as  I  gave  thee 
charge.” 

With  great  care  Paul  then  prescribes  the  exact  quali¬ 
fications  which  these  officers  must  possess.  We  may  take 
for  granted  that  those  who  were  to  be  selected  for  such 
important  positions  would  be  men  of  some  manifest  abili¬ 
ties  and  talents,  and  men  who  had  some  inclination  as  well 
as  capacity  for  the  work.  It  will  be  remembered  also  that 
in  the  third  chapter  of  First  Timothy  rather  similar  quali¬ 
fications  are  detailed  for  the  “bishop,”  a  word  which  Paul 
here  uses,  v.  7,  as  equivalent  to  “elder”  and  as  defining  the 
same  office. 

The  functions  of  the  office  seem  to  have  been  those  of 
ruling  and  teaching,  and  evidently  the  qualifications  for 
the  office  are  those  which  may  rightly  be  expected  in  the 
case  of  the  modern  “pastor”  or  “minister.” 

He  must  be  “blameless,”  not  merely  of  good  reputation 
in  general,  but  having  no  habit  or  characteristic  upon  which 
one  could  lay  hold  to  bring  him  into  disrepute.  He  must  be 
“above  reproach.” 

He  must  be  “the  husband  of  one  wife,”  literally,  “a 
man  of  one  woman,”  by  which  Paul  probably  means  a 
“faithful  husband.”  Several  other  interpretations  have 
been  placed  upon  these  words,  particularly  that  of  having 
been  “only  once  married”;  but  as  Paul  allowed  and  en¬ 
couraged  second  marriages,  it  is  improbable  that  he  should 
regard  this  as  disqualifying  one  from  serving  as  an  “elder.” 
It  is  possible  that  the  term  excluded  one  who  had  married 
while  a  divorced  wife  was  still  living.  The  requirement 
seems  to  be  that  the  elder  should  be  absolutely  above  sus¬ 
picion  in  his  marriage  relations. 


142 


TITUS 


Titus  1 ;  5-16 


His  family  life  should  also  be  commendable;  he  should 
have  ‘‘children  that  believe,  who  are  not  accused  of  riot  or 
unruly.”  If  an  officer  should  have  unbelieving  children,  it 
might  indicate  that  he  was  either  careless  as  a  Christian, 
or  a  recent  convert;  and  if  his  children  were  insubordinate, 
it  might  indicate  that  the  “elder”  lacked  the  ability  to 
rule  the  “household  of  God,”  the  congregation  of  believers. 

Thus  an  “elder,”  as  an  overseer  of  the  church,  or  as  Paul 
here  describes  him,  a  “bishop,”  must  be  “blameless”  as  a 
“steward”  in  the  house  of  God;  not  “self-willed,”  self- 
satisfied,  or  arrogant;  “not  soon  angry,”  irascible,  of 
passionate  temper;  “no  brawler,”  or  one  “given  over  to 
wine”;  “no  striker,”  a  prohibition  more  necessary  in  that 
earlier  age,  but  men  in  every  age  have  been  tempted  to  be 
violent,  and  one  of  such  a  disposition  should  not  be  chosen 
as  an  “elder”;  “not  greedy  of  filthy  lucre,”  which  forbids 
not  merely  avarice,  but  any  tendency  to  gain  wealth  by 
disgraceful  means.  On  the  other  hand,  an  “elder”  must  be 
“given  to  hospitality,”  a  grace  even  more  needed  in  the 
early  Church,  or  in  mission  lands,  than  in  the  present  day 
or  in  Christian  countries.  He  must  be  a  “lover  of  good  ” — 
not  merely  of  “good  men”  but  of  “good”  in  its  widest 
sense,  even  of  “goodness”  itself;  “sober-minded,”  or 
characterized  by  complete  self-mastery;  “just,”  or  right¬ 
eous  in  his  dealings  toward  men;  “holy,”  or  “saintly,”  in 
his  relations  toward  God;  “self-controlled,”  or  able  to  re¬ 
frain  from  all  that  may  be  unlawful. 

The  true  “elder”  must  also  be  a  guardian  of  the  faith. 
He  must  hold  fast  the  sacred  tradition,  according  to  the 
gospel  as  taught  by  the  apostles,  and  he  must  be  thus 
qualified  because  of  his  twofold  duty  as  a  teacher,  first,  to 
encourage  and  instruct  believers,  “to  exhort  in  the  sound 
doctrine,”  and,  second,  “to  convict  the  gainsayers,”  that 
is,  to  withstand  unbelieving  opponents,  to  reply  to  them 
successfully,  to  “convict”  them  of  fault. 

Such  a  firm  grasp  of  revealed  truth  was  a  necessary  re¬ 
quirement  for  one  who  was  to  meet  the  caviling  heretics 
in  Crete,  and  it  is  equally  necessary  to-day  for  those  who 
would  encourage  believers  and  defend  the  gospel  which  it 
is  the  privilege  of  the  Church  to  guard. 


Titus  1:5-16  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  ELDERS 


143 


That  “elders”  of  such  high  moral  attainments  and  such 
firm  grasp  of  the  faith  were  particularly  needed  in  view  of 
the  conditions  in  Crete,  Paul  proceeds  to  demonstrate 
by  a  description  both  of  the  general  character  of  the  Cre¬ 
tans  and  of  the  special  nature  of  the  false  teachers. 

As  to  the  latter,  he  declares  that  they  are  “many”  in 
number,  that  they  are  “unruly,”  or  insubordinate,  as  mem¬ 
bers  of  the  professing  Church,  “vain  talkers,”  devoted  to 
fanciful  and  foolish  conceits,  and  this  particularly  in  the 
case  of  those  who  came  from  among  the  Jews  and  were 
mistaken  champions  of  the  law. 

These  rebellious  babblers  must  be  put  to  silence,  not 
only  by  answering  their  heresies,  but  also  by  open  rebuke, 
inasmuch  as  they  “overthrow  whole  houses,”  that  is,  they 
destroy  the  faith  of  entire  families,  by  “teaching  things 
which  they  ought  not.”  While  professing  a  zeal  for  the 
ceremonial  law  and  for  holiness,  the  real  motive  of  these 
Judaizers  was  their  desire  for  dishonest  and  disgraceful 
gain ;  their  false  teaching  was  really  “  for  filthy  lucre’s  sake.” 

The  peril  was  the  greater  because  of  the  character  of 
Cretans  in  general.  Paul  has  had  them  in  mind  before,  for 
when  he  mentioned  the  Jewish  teachers,  he  specified  them 
as  only  the  most  troublesome  of  the  heretics.  Cretans  at 
large  were  of  the  very  character  already  indicated.  To  prove 
his  charge,  Paul  quotes  from  one  of  their  own  number, 
Epimenides,  a  reputed  prophet  who  flourished  about  six 
hundred  years  before  Christ:  “Cretans  are  always  liars,  evil 
beasts,  idle  gluttons.” 

This  quotation  brings  to  mind  the  famous  syllogistic 
puzzle:  Epimenides  said  that  the  Cretans  were  liars;  but 
Epimenides  was  a  Cretan ;  therefore  Epimenides  was  a  liar ; 
therefore  the  Cretans  were  not  liars.”  The  fact  is,  however, 
that  on  this  one  occasion,  at  least,  Epimenides  told  the 
truth,  when  he  accused  his  countrymen  of  being  false,  fierce, 
and  sensual.  So  notorious  was  their  insincerity  that  “to 
play  the  Cretan”  was  understood  to  mean  “to  lie” or  “to 
deceive.”  Then  as  to  their  ferocity,  the  poet  is  said  to  have 
stated  sarcastically  that  “the  absence  of  wild  beasts  from 
Crete  was  supplied  by  its  human  inhabitants.” 

As  to  gluttony,  the  words  in  the  English  translation 


144 


TITUS 


Titus  1 ;  5-16 


hardly  convey  the  meaning  of  the  original  Greek,  which 
pictures  persons  so  intemperate  in  their  gratification  of 
appetite  as  to  bear  in  their  persons  evidence  of  their  shame. 

To  this  severe  indictment  of  Cretan  character,  Paul  gives 
his  assent:  “This  testimony  is  true’’— a  serious  statement 
to  make  in  a  letter  which  was  to  be  read  by  Cretans  and  to 
be  given  a  place  among  the  books  of  the  Bible.  Such  a  con¬ 
firmation  from  the  pen  of  the  apostle  indicates  that  in  his 
day  there  could  have  been  little  question  as  to  the  debased 
moral  character  of  the  inhabitants  of  Crete. 

It  is  to  the  glory  of  Christianity  that  in  soil  so  unprom¬ 
ising  it  produced  the  flower  and  fruit  of  faith  and  holiness. 
However,  it  is  not  surprising  that  even  within  a  church 
composed  of  Cretan  converts  and  surrounded  by  an  atmos¬ 
phere  of  such  moral  laxity,  there  appeared  teachers,  par¬ 
ticularly  from  among  the  Jewish  element,  who  taught  a 
false  asceticism,  who  insisted  that  the  essence  of  religion 
consisted  in  refraining  from  certain  kinds  of  food,  in  per¬ 
forming  certain  prescribed  rites  and  ceremonies,  and  who 
thereby  made  shipwreck  of  real  faith  and  ended  in  moral 
disaster. 

Because  the  peril  of  Cretan  Christians  was  so  great,  Paul 
insisted  that  these  false  teachers  should  be  dealt  with  the 
more  severely.  “For  which  cause  reprove  them  sharply,’’ 
writes  the  apostle,  meaning  not  merely  that  their  ar¬ 
guments  are  to  be  answered  and  their  fallacies  corrected, 
but  that  the  teachers  are  to  be  rebuked  as  deceivers  and  as. 
self-deceived.  Nevertheless,  the  rebuke,  however  severe, 
is  to  be  administered  like  all  church  discipline,  with  a 
view  to  the  reform  of  the  offender,  “that  they  may  be 
sound  in  the  faith,”  At  least,  Titus  is  to  make  it  plain 
that  the  false  teachers  are  corrupting  the  truths  of  the 
gospel  and  are  “giving  heed  to  Jewish  fables,  and  com¬ 
mandments  of  men.”  These  “fables”  are  the  idle,  fool¬ 
ish,  speculations,  which  Paul  previously,  in  these  Pastoral 
Letters,  has  rebuked  severely;  and  the  “commandments” 
are  evidently  the  rules  of  ascetic  living,  the  arbitrary  pro¬ 
hibitions,  upon  which  the  false  teachers  are  insisting; 
and  they  are  condemned,  not  merely  because  they  are  of 


Titus  1:5-16  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  ELDERS 


145 


human  origin  and  without  divine  sanction,  but  because 
those  by  whom  they  are  being  enforced  are  “  men  who  turn 
away  from  the  truth” ;  they  are  not  real  believers. 

As  to  these  ceremonial  forms  and  requirements,  Paul 
declares  that  “to  the  pure  all  things  are  pure.”  He  is 
probably  quoting  a  maxim  which  the  corrupt  teachers 
perverted  to  mean  that  one  who  was  ceremonially  clean, 
and  who  observed  the  ritual  which  to  his  mind  consti¬ 
tuted  religion,  need  not  be  troubled  about  “insignificant” 
matters  of  common  morality. 

Paul  uses  the  phrase  in  a  very  different  sense.  He  re¬ 
peats  the  teaching  of  our  Master,  that  if  the  heart  is  pure 
then  one  cannot  be  made  unclean  by  contact  with  food  or 
other  objects  which  men  arbitrarily  have  declared  to  be 
“unclean.”  Mere  rites  and  ceremonies,  aside  from  faith 
and  purity,  are  meaningless. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  is  true,  as  Paul  continues  to  re¬ 
mark,  that  “to  them  that  are  defiled  and  unbelieving 
nothing  is  pure,”  that  is  to  say,  those  whose  hearts  are  im¬ 
pure  defile  everything  with  which  they  come  into  contact, 
and  even  lawful  things  become,  in  their  case,  “unclean.” 
Thus  the  principle  here  stated  is  not  merely  that  found  in 
Rom.  14: 14,  namely,  that  a  thing  is  wrong  for  him  who  so 
regards  it;  nor  does  it  mean  “Evil  be  to  him  who  evil 
thinks”  (not  Iloni  soil  qui  mal  y  pense,"  “Shamed  be  he 
who  thinks  evil  of  it”).  The  statement  here  is  even  more 
serious.  It  does  not  teach  that  a  mistaken  judgment  makes 
a  thing  wrong,  but  that  in  the  case  of  those  who  are 
inwardly  “defiled,”  and  who  are  “unbelieving,”  and  there¬ 
fore  are  refusing  the  truth  which  alone  can  cleanse  the 
heart,  all  their  deeds  and  even  the  natural  uses  of  food  and 
drink  are  tainted  with  evil  because  of  the  polluting  foun¬ 
tain  within,  because,  as  Paul  further  intimates,  “both 
their  mind  and  their  conscience  are  defiled.”  Their  mental 
processes  are  perverted  by  impure  associations,  and  their 
conscience,  for  the  same  cause,  has  no  power  to  discern 
between  right  and  wrong. 

However,  when  Paul  states  that  “their  mind  and  their 
conscience  are  defiled,”  he  does  not  formally  give  it  as  a 


146 


TITUS 


Titus  1 :  5-16 


reason  why,  to  them,  external  things  are  impure;  rather, 
he  adds  this  phrase  to  describe  further  the  false  teachers, 
by  stating  that  their  corruption  extends  to  both  their 
mental  and  moral  powers,  so  as  to  taint  with  evil  both  their 
judgments  and  their  deeds. 

The  description  ends  with  an  indictment  which  applies 
with  greater  force  to  the  false  teachers  who  were  Jewish: 
“They  profess  that  they  know  God;  but  by  their  works 
they  deny  him.”  They  were  proud  of  their  religious  privi¬ 
lege;  their  great  boast  was  that  they  knew  the  one,  true 
God;  their  very  ceremonies  and  ritual  they  traced  to  his 
original  commands ;  however,  by  their  conduct  they  actu¬ 
ally  belied  any  such  knowledge  of  God;  they  were  “abom¬ 
inable,”  detestable,  and  “disobedient,”  and  so  far  as  the 
accomplishment  of  any  good  thing  was  concerned,  they 
were  utterly  unfit,  useless,  “reprobate,”  that  is,  of  “no 
account,”  of  no  possible  use. 

The  exact  forms  of  false  teaching  and  of  consequent 
moral  laxity  which  threatened  the  church  in  Crete  may  not 
exist  to-day;  but  formalism  is  not  dead,  and  when  men 
imagine  that  the  essence  of  religion  consists  in  external 
rites  or  is  promoted  by  “vain”  discussions  of  subtle  the¬ 
ories,  then  morality  is  alv/ays  in  peril  and  there  is  an  even 
more  insistent  need  for  securing,  as  “elders,”  or  “pres¬ 
byters,”  or  “bishops,”  or  pastors,  men  who  will  proclaim 
and  defend  the  “sound  doctrine”  of  the  Christian  gospel. 
It  was  for  this  very  purpose  that  Paul  had  left  Titus  in 
Crete. 


Titus,  ch.  2  CONDUCT  AMONG  CHRISTIANS 


147 


B.  CONDUCT  AMONG  CHRISTIANS— IN  VIEW  OF 
THE  SAVING  PURPOSE  OF  GOD.  Ch.  2 

1  But  speak  thou  the  things  which  befit  the  sound  doctrine : 
2  that  aged  men  be  temperate,  grave,  sober-minded,  sound  in 
faith,  in  love,  in  patience:  3  that  aged  women  likewise  be 
reverent  in  demeanor,  not  slanderers  nor  enslaved  to  much 
wine,  teachers  of  that  which  is  good;  4  that  they  may  train 
the  young  women  to  love  their  husbands,  to  love  their  chil¬ 
dren,  5  to  be  sober-minded,  chaste,  workers  at  home,  kind, 
being  in  subjection  to  their  own  husbands,  that  the  word  of 
God  be  not  blasphemed:  6  the  younger  men  likewise  exhort 
to  be  sober-minded:  7  in  all  things  showing  thyself  an  en- 
sample  of  good  works;  in  thy  doctrine  showing  uncorruptness, 
gravity,  8  sound  speech,  that  cannot  be  condemned;  that  he 
that  is  of  the  contrary  part  may  be  ashamed,  having  no  evil 
thing  to  say  of  us.  9  Exhort  servants  to  be  in  subjection  to  their 
own  masters,  and  to  be  well-pleasing  to  them  in  all  things; 
not  gainsaying;  10  not  purloining,  but  showing  all  good  fi¬ 
delity;  that  they  may  adorn  the  doctrine  of  God  our  Saviour  in 
all  things.  11  For  the  grace  of  God  hath  appeared,  bringing 
salvation  to  all  men,  12  instructing  us,  to  the  intent  that, 
denying  ungodliness  and  worldly  lusts,  we  should  live  soberly 
and  righteously  and  godly  in  this  present  world ;  13  looking  for 
the  blessed  hope  and  appearing  of  the  glory  of  the  great  God 
and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ ;  14  who  gave  himself  for  us,  that 
he  might  redeem  us  from  all  iniquity,  and  purify  unto  him¬ 
self  a  people  for  his  own  possession,  zealous  of  good  works. 

15  These  things  speak  and  exhort  and  reprove  with  all 
authority.  Let  no  man  despise  thee. 

The  Epistle  to  Titus  brings  the  Pastoral  Epistles  to  their 
logical  climax;  for,  while  all  treat  of  Church  government, 
of  sound  doctrine,  and  of  consistent  living,  in  Titus  the 
greatest  proportionate  stress  is  laid  upon  the  last  of  these 
three;  and  is  it  not  true  that  Church  government  is  de¬ 
signed  to  safeguard  doctrine,  and  that  doctrine  finds  its 
fruitage  in  deeds?  Therefore,  in  this  epistle,  when  Paul 
has  instructed  Titus  to  complete  the  organization  of  the 
church  by  appointing  elders  in  every  city,  and  when  he  has 


148 


TITUS 


Titus,  ch.  2 


insisted  that  this  is  in  order  to  put  to  silence  the  teachers 
of  false  doctrines  whose  influence  is  defiling  the  life  of  the 
believers,  he  urges  Titus  not  only  to  teach  sound  doctrine, 
but  also  to  bring  it  to  bear  upon  all  classes  of  Christians  and 
upon  every  condition  of  life:  “But  speak  thou  the  things 
which  befit  the  sound  doctrine,”  that  is,  in  contrast  with  the 
false  teachers,  who  concerned  themselves  with  “vain”  dis¬ 
cussions  of  foolish  fables  and  questions  as  to  things  clean 
and  unclean.  Titus  is  to  give  practical  instruction  as  to 
moral  conduct  which  is  consistent  with  the  gospel  and  in¬ 
deed  is  inspired  by  its  truths. 

This  conduct  is  to  be  enjoined  upon  old  and  young,  upon 
men  and  women,  upon  slaves  as  well  as  free  men.  He  is  to 
teach  “  that  aged  men  be  temperate,  grave,  sober-minded.” 
The  last  of  these  three  qualities  is  one  which  is  again  and 
again  enjoined  by  Paul.  According  to  Plato  it  was  one  of 
the  four  cardinal  virtues.  It  denoted  control  of  the  bodily 
appetites,  but  as  used  in  the  New  Testament,  it  implies 
complete  self-mastery,  a  control  of  mind  and  of  thought  as 
well  as  of  the  body.  It  is  enjoined  upon  old  and  young, 
upon  “elders”  and  upon  young  women  as  well,  and  it  is  so 
often  repeated  in  this  chapter  as  to  form  almost  a  keynote 
to  its  moral  precepts. 

Aged  men  are  to  be  also  “sound  in  faith,  in  love,  in  pa¬ 
tience.”  These  virtues  should  be  possessed  by  all  Chris¬ 
tians,  but  in  an  eminent  degree  they  should  be  manifested 
by  men  of  advancing  years.  The  exercise  of  faith  and  love 
and  patience  should  for  such  men  be  natural  and  normal 
and  habitual,  as  Paul  seems  to  indicate  by  his  use  of  the 
term  “sound”  or  healthy. 

It  is  expected  also  “that  aged  women  likewise  be  rever¬ 
ent  in  demeanor,  not  slanderers  nor  enslaved  to  much  wine, 
teachers  of  that  which  is  good.”  The  teaching  here  men¬ 
tioned  is  not  in  the  nature  of  public,  but  of  private,  in¬ 
struction.  It  was  to  be  given  more  particularly  to  the 
young  married  women.  They  were  to  be  trained  “to  love 
their  husbands,  to  love  their  children,  to  be  sober-minded, 
chaste,  workers  at  home,  kind,  being  in  subjection  to  their 
own  husbands.”  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  Paul  believed 
that  the  husband  is  and  ought  to  be  “  the  head  of  the  wife  ” ; 


Titus,  ch.  2  CONDUCT  AMONG  CHRISTIANS 


'149 


but  he  showed  that  the  relation  must  be  that  of  perfect 
love,  recognizing  a  complete  spiritual  equality.  It  is  these 
very  teachings  of  the  apostle  which  have  resulted  in  the  in¬ 
creasing  emancipation  of  women.  However,  he  sanctioned 
no  violent  revolution  in  social  and  domestic  life,  lest  the 
very  principles  which  he  advocated  might  be  misunderstood, 
“  that  the  word  of  God  ”  the  gospel,  be  not  “blasphemed.” 

It  is  significant  that  Paul  relegates  to  the  “aged  women,” 
and  not  to  Titus,  the  task  of  instructing  the  young  matrons 
of  the  Church.  The  comparative  youth  of  Titus  made  this 
expedient,  but  was,  on  the  other  hand,  the  very  reason  why 
he  was  specially  qualified  to  teach  “the  younger  men  ...  to 
be  sober-minded”;  for  he  by  his  own  conduct  could  in¬ 
fluence  them  aright.  Therefore  Paul  urges  upon  Titus,  as 
upon  every  Christian  minister,  to  show  himself  “an  en- 
sample  of  good  works,”  especially  in  his  teaching,  showing 
such  sincerity,  gravity,  soundness  of  speech,  that  the  op¬ 
ponents  of  Christianity  might  be  discomfited  by  being  able 
to  find  no  evil  to  report. 

Even  slaves  were  so  to  live  as  to  reflect  credit  upon  their 
Christian  profession.  Their  condition  under  existing  Ro¬ 
man  laws  and  customs  was  degraded  and  distressful  be- 
beyond  all  conception.  The  teachings  of  Paul  and  his 
fellow  believers,  as  received  from  their  Master,  were  to 
abolish,  in  time,  the  very  institution  of  slavery;  but  the 
apostle  advocates  no  violent  revolution;  he  neither  forbids 
slaves  nor  encourages  slaves  to  demand  freedom.  On  the 
contrary,  slaves  are  advised  “to  be  in  subjection  to  their 
own  masters,  and  to  be  well-pleasing  to  them  in  all  things; 
not  gainsaying  [contradicting];  not  purloining  [pilfering, 
appropriating  goods  to  their  own  use],  but  showing  all 
good  fidelity;  that  they  may  adorn  the  doctrine  of  God  our 
Saviour  in  all  things.” 

That  slaves,  in  the  age  of  Augustus,  might  be  an  orna¬ 
ment  to  a  system  of  divine  truth,  must  have  been  a  start¬ 
ling  statement,  but  it  was  the  very  glory  of  the  gospel  that 
it  could  transform  such  degraded  beings  into  obedient,  hon¬ 
est,  chaste,  sober  men  and  women.  It  was  possible  for 
slaves  so  to  live  that  they  would  reflect  honor  upon  “the 
doctrine  of  God”  who  provided  so  wonderful  a  salvation. 


150 


TITUS 


Titus,  ch.  2 


It  was  to  the  gospel,  indeed,  that  such  transformations 
of  life  and  character  were  to  be  attributed ;  it  was  also  upon 
its  truths  that  such  moral  instructions  were  founded. 
Truth  is  in  order  to  goodness,  but  goodness  is  not  inde¬ 
pendent  of  truth;  creed  affects  character,  but  character 
cannot  be  produced  without  belief;  doctrine  is  not  more 
important  than  conduct,  but  conduct  is  conditioned  upon 
faith.  It  is  for  this  reason  that  Paul  bases  all  the  exhorta¬ 
tions  of  the  chapter  upon  a  summary  of  gospel  truth  which 
for  beauty  and  depth  and  significance  is  possibly  unsur¬ 
passed. 

This  summary  includes  the  two  great  focal  points  of  the 
faith,  namely,  the  First  and  the  Second  Coming  of  Christ. 
In  his  First  Coming,  as  the  Redeemer  of  mankind,  that  is 
in  his  incarnation  and  atonement,  Paul  declares,  “The 
grace  of  God”  has  “appeared  bringing  salvation  to  all 
men,”  Because  this  salvation  has  been  provided  for  all, 
therefore  all  who  have  accepted  this  gracious  gift,  whether 
young  or  old,  bond  or  free,  should  live  the  lives  of  holiness 
and  godliness  which  Paul  has  described. 

Indeed,  the  very  purpose  of  God  in  manifesting  this 
grace  was  that  we  believers  might  be  trained,  or  schooled, 
or  instructed,  “  to  the  intent  that,  denying  ungodliness  and 
worldly  lusts,  we  should  live  soberly  and  righteously  and 
godly  in  this  present  world.”  Thus  the  saving  purpose  of 
God  is  stated  negatively  and  positively;  negatively,  that 
we  should  renounce  or  repudiate  “ungodliness”  or  ir- 
reiigion,  and  “worldly  lusts,”  i.  e.,  the  sinful  desires  which 
have  no  relation  to  a  higher  realm  and  belong  to  a  world 
estranged  from  God;  and,  positively,  that  “we  should 
live  soberly,”  exercising  complete  mastery  over  ourselves; 
“righteously,”  in  our  relations  toward  our  fellow  men; 
“and  godly,”  i.  e.,  with  true  reverence  and  love  toward 
him  who  has  granted  us  so  great  a  salvation.  We  are  to 
live  so  “in  this  present  world,”  that  is,  in  an  “age”  the 
spirit  of  which  is  not  sober  or  righteous  or  godly,  because, 
as  a  result  of  our  Christian  “teaching,”  we  are  “looking” 
also  for  a  visible  manifestation,  “  for  the  .  .  .  appearing  of 
the  glory  of  the  great  God  and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.” 
This  “appearing”  is  to  be  realized  in  the  return  of  Christ, 


Titus,  ch.  2  CONDUCT  AMONG  CHRISTIANS 


151 


as  he  himself  declared  that  when  he  came  again  it  would 
be,  not  in  humiliation,  but  in  the  glory  of  his  Father,  as 
well  as  in  his  own  heavenly  glory. 

Thus,  we  are  constrained  to  such  a  life  of  penitence,  of 
virtue,  and  of  hope,  by  the  redeeming  purpose  of  Christ 
“who  gave  himself  for  us,  that  he  might  redeem  us  from 
all  iniquity,  and  purify  unto  himself  a  people  for  his  own 
possession,  zealous  of  good  works.”  That  is,  the  very  pur¬ 
pose  of  Christ  in  dying  for  us  was  to  purchase  our  freedom 
from  the  slavery  of  sin  and  “  purify  unto  himself  a  people,” 
that  is,  to  purify  and  so  make  them  fit  to  be  his  people,  his 
own  people,  “a  people  for  his  own  possession.”  This  last 
phrase  recalls  the  equivalent  words  of  the  promise  made  to 
Israel  on  condition  of  their  obedience  to  God:  “Ye  shall  be 
mine  own  possession,”  Ex.  19:  5.  Further,  it  was  the  re¬ 
deeming  purpose  of  Christ  not  only  to  deliver  from  law¬ 
lessness,  but  also  to  have  as  his  own  a  people  “zealous  of 
good  works”;  for  Christian  experience  is  not  a  mere  nega¬ 
tive  deliverance  from  evil;  it  is  a  positive  and  active  and 
willing  and  eager  performance  of  good.  Redemption  se¬ 
cures  sanctification,  and  results  in  service. 

These  great  truths  of  the  Christian  faith  Paul  exhorts 
Titus  to  teach;  they  form  the  essence  of  “sound  doctrine,” 
and  their  solemn  sanction  and  high  inspiration  is  to  be 
brought  to  bear  upon  all  the  duties  and  experiences  of  life. 

“These  things  speak,”  writes  the  apostle,  but  he  adds, 
“  and  exhort” — for  the  truths  were  to  be  made  to  bear  upon 
the  conscience  and  to  result  in  right  conduct;  “and  re¬ 
prove” —  for  in  cases  of  waywardness  and  fault,  Titus 
must  admonish  and  rebuke  the  offenders. 

Lastly,  these  exhortations  and  reproofs  were  to  be  char¬ 
acterized  by  a  tone  of  authority,  so  that  none  might  re¬ 
gard  lightly  the  ambassador  of  Christ.  He  must  speak  with 
the  authority  which  comes  from  a  knowledge  of  the  divine 
will  and  of  the  saving  purpose  of  God. 


152 


TITUS 


Titus  3:1-11 


C.  CONDUCT  TOWARD  UNBELIEVERS— IN  VIEW  OF 
•  THE  SAVING  MERCIES  OF  GOD.  Ch.  3:  1-11 

1  Put  them  in  mind  to  be  in  subjection  to  rulers,  to  au¬ 
thorities,  to  be  obedient,  to  be  ready  unto  every  good  work, 
2  to  speak  evil  of  no  man,  not  to  be  contentious,  to  be  gentle, 
showing  all  meekness  toward  all  men.  3  For  we  also  once 
were  foolish,  disobedient,  deceived,  serving  divers  lusts  and 
pleasures,  living  in  malice  and  envy,  hateful,  hating  one 
another.  4  But  when  the  kindness  of  God  our  Saviour,  and  his 
love  toward  man,  appeared,  5  not  by  works  done  in  right¬ 
eousness,  which  we  did  ourselves,  but  according  to  his  mercy 
he  saved  us,  through  the  washing  of  regeneration  and  renew¬ 
ing  of  tiie  Holy  Spirit,  6  which  he  poured  out  upon  us  richly, 
through  Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour;  7  that,  being  justified  by 
his  grace,  we  might  be  made  heirs  according  to  the  hope  of 
eternal  life.  8  Faithful  is  the  saying,  and  concerning  ^ese 
things  I  desire  that  thou  affirm  confidently,  to  the  end  that  they 
who  have  believed  God  may  be  careful  to  maintain  good  works. 
These  things  are  good  and  profitable  .unto  men:  9  but  shun 
foolish  questionings,  and  genealogies,  and  strifes,  and  fight¬ 
ings  about  the  law;  for  they  are  unprofitable  and  vain.  10  A 
factious  man  after  a  first  and  second  admonition  refuse; 
11  knowing  that  such  a  one  is  perverted,  and  sinneth,  being 
self-condemned. 

Paul  here  reminds  Titus  that  it  is  his  duty,  and  the  duty 
of  the  Christian  pastors  in  Crete,  as  they  apply  truth  to 
life,  to  insist  upon  right  conduct  toward  those  outside  the 
Church — first  toward  their  Roman  rulers,  but  then,  more 
widely,  to  maintain  friendly  relations  with  all  who  are  not 
Christians.  “Put  them  in  mind  to  be  in  subjection  to 
rulers,  to  authorities,  to  be  obedient,  to  be  ready  unto  every 
good  work.”  It  has  been  suggested  that  the  Cretans  were 
naturally  turbulent  and  troublesome  and  insubordinate, 
and  that,  as  such,  those  among  them  who  professed  faith 
in  Christ  were  specially  in  need  of  such  admonitions.  Is 
it  too  much  to  say,  however,  that  the  need  is  not  confined 
to  natives  of  that  island  or  to  men  of  that  day?  We  seem 


Titus  3:  1-11  CONDUCT  TOWARD  UNBELIEVERS  153 


to  live  in  an  age  peculiarly  marked  by  lawlessness  and  a 
disregard  of  authority.  It  is  at  such  a  time  the  duty  and 
the  privilege  of  Christians,  by  their  obedience  to  civil  mag¬ 
istrates  and  their  loyalty  to  established  government,  to 
commend  to  the  world  the  gospel  they  profess.  Of  course, 
there  are  limits  to  such  obedience.  When  authorities  de¬ 
mand  that  which  is  morally  wrong,  it  is  necessary  to  “obey 
God  rather  than  men.”  As  a  rule,  however,  the  purpose  of 
civil  officers  is  to  restrain  evil  and  to  encourage  good. 

Possibly  this  thought  furnishes  the  transition  to  the 
wider  reach  of  the  exhortation  for  Christians  to  maintain 
right  relations  with  unbelieving  neighbors:  “To  speak  evil 
of  no  man,  not  to  be  contentious,  to  be  gentle,”  or  sweetly 
reasonable,  “showing  all  meekness  toward  all  men.” 

To  manifest  such  conduct  toward  unbelievers  is  the  less 
difficult  when  we  remember  that  we  were  once  like  them  in 
character  and  would  be  like  them  to-day  were  it  not  for  the 
unmerited  mercy  of  God.  “For  we  also  once  were  foolish,” 
that  is,  without  the  understanding  of  spiritual  things, 
“disobedient,  deceived”  or  deluded,  “serving  divers  lusts 
and  pleasures,”  i.e.,  slaves  to  all  manner  of  passions  and 
indulgences,  “living  in  malice  and  envy,  hateful,  hating 
one  another.” 

This  is  indeed  a  dark  and  pitiful  picture  of  the  Christ- 
less  world,  but  those  of  us  who  know  the  depths  of  our  own 
hearts  can  say,  “But  for  the  grace  of  God  such,  too,  were 
we.” 

In  reminding  Titus  of  this  divine  grace,  Paul  gives 
another  supremely  beautiful  summary  of  Christian  truth. 
He  begins  by  describing  this  grace  as  “the  kindness  of  God 
our  Saviour,  and  his  love  toward  man,”  at  once  indicating 
that  we  should  therefore  be  inclined  to  show  such  kindness 
and  love  to  our  fellow  men,  v.  2,  and  at  the  same  time  sharply 
contrasting  this  goodness  of  God  with  human  malice  and 
hatred,  v.  3. 

This  grace  “appeared,”  as  shown  in  the  previous  chapter, 
in  the  coming  and  the  redeeming  work  of  Christ,  by  which 
salvation  was  made  possible.  Of  that  salvation  which  was 


154 


TITUS 


Titus  3 :  1-11 


thus  brought  to  all  men,  we  have  been  made  recipients 
“not  by  works  done  in  righteousness,  which  we  did  our¬ 
selves,”  not  by  any  merits  of  our  own,  “but  according  to 
his  mercy  he  saved  us.”  Nothing  is  said  here  of  the  faith 
and  obedience  on  our  part,  which  are  necessary  to  salvation ; 
these  are  assumed,  as  taught  in  other  parts  of  Scripture. 
The  design  of  the  apostle  here  is  to  fix  the  thought  upon  the 
unmerited  favor  of  God  to  which  our  salvation  must  ul¬ 
timately  be  attributed. 

As  to  the  means  by  which  this  salvation  is  communi¬ 
cated,  Paul  states  that  it  is  “through  the  washing  of  re¬ 
generation  and  renewing  of  the  Holy  Spirit.”  If,  as  usually 
believed,  Paul  refers  to  baptism  as  “the  bath  of  the  new 
birth,”  he  does  so  with  the  understanding  that  it  was  no 
mere  external  rite,  but  a  real  sacrament  in  which  inward 
faith  and  grace  properly  accompanied  outward  form.  It  is, 
however,  not  upon  subjective  conditions,  but  upon  the 
works  of  God  that  Paul  centers  our  thought,  and  he  adds 
that  the  *  ‘  washing  ’  ’  secures  not  only  a  ‘  ‘  new  birth  ”  but  also 
a  moral  “renewal”  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit  which 
God  “poured  out  upon  us  richly,  through  Jesus  Christ  our 
Saviour.”  The  pouring  out  of  the  Holy  Spirit  is  uniformly 
attributed  in  the  New  Testament  to  Jesus  Christ,  and  in 
virtue  of  his  redeeming  work  and  his  exaltation.  Thus  in 
imparting  to  us  salvation,  all  the  Persons  of  the  divine  God¬ 
head  are  concerned,  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Spirit. 

This  saving  grace  of  God  has  been  granted  us  “that, 
being  justified  by  his  grace,  we  might  be  made  heirs  ac¬ 
cording  to  the  hope  of  eternal  life,”  for  it  was  the  purpose 
of  God  not  only  to  deliver  us  from  the  bondage  of  sin  and 
to  grant  us  spiritual  renewal  but  also  to  make  us  partakers 
of  his  eternal  glory,  so  that  now  we  are  not  only  justified  by 
his  grace  but  are  also  heirs  of  God  and  certain  to  realize 
the  hope  of  life  eternal. 

As  to  this  majestic  summary  of  revealed  truth,  Paul  re¬ 
marks,  “Faithful  is  the  saying,”  using  a  phrase  which  is 
employed  four  other  times  in  these  Pastoral  Epistles  to 
describe  what  are  commonly  regarded  as  formulas  of 
Christian  faith,  I  Tim.  1 :  15;  3:  1 ;  4:  9;  H  Tim.  2:  11. 


Titus  3:  1-11  CONDUCT  TOWARD  UNBELIEVERS  155 


The  statements  of  the  great  essentials  of  belief  which  he 
has  been  making  are  thus  declared  to  be  absolutely  trust¬ 
worthy,  so  that  Titus  can  affirm  them  “confidently,”  and 
with  the  purpose  of  showing  that  real  faith  in  God  is  not 
a  matter  of  theory  or  speculation  but  of  practice.  True 
belief  will  manifest  itself  in  life,  and  to  that  end  the  proc¬ 
lamation  of  Christian  truth  should  ever  be  directed.  Thus 
Titus  is  urged  to  proclaim  these  great  verities  of  saving 
grace  “to  the  end  that  they  who  have  believed  God  may  be 
careful  to  maintain  good  works.” 

Such  an  enforcement  of  practical  religion  is  “good  and 
profitable  unto  men.”  On  the  other  hand,  the  “foolish 
questionings”  with  which  the  false  teachers  in  Crete  con¬ 
cern  themselves,  their  allegories  based  upon  “genealogies,” 
their  “strifes”  and  their  “fightings”  about  the  law,  are 
“unprofitable  and  vain;”  Titus,  therefore,  is  not  even  to 
investigate  them,  but  is  to  “shun”  them  utterly  as  useless, 
and  as  utterly  powerless  in  the  matter  of  producing  higher 
life,  nobler  character,  and  purer  conduct. 

Any  person  who,  because  of  his  concern  in  these  vain 
conceits,  causes  division  in  the  Church,  any  such  “fac¬ 
tious  man,”  Paul  continues,  “after  a  first  and  second  ad¬ 
monition,”  calling  attention  to  the  injury  and  folly  of  such 
separations  between  Christians,  “refuse,”  avoid,  have 
nothing  more  to  do  with  him,  since  you  may  rest  assured 
that  he  is  “perverted,”  and  when  a  man  has  “a  mental 
twist”  and  is  unwilling  to  be  taught,  it  is  a  waste  of  time  and 
strength  to  argue  with  him;  such  a  man,  who  is  bent  on 
fomenting  discord,  is  acting  contrary  to  reason  and  con¬ 
science;  he  “sinneth,”  and  in  dividing  the  Church  because 
of  his  boasted  new  knowledge,  and  in  repudiating  his  for¬ 
mer  beliefs,  he  is  following  a  course  by  which  he  is  “self- 
condemned.” 

The  last  phrase  may  possibly  mean  “conscious  of  guilt;” 
but  in  either  case,  the  sentence  calls  to  mind  one  of  the 
most  serious  problems  which  confront  the  Christian  pas¬ 
tor  of  the  present  day,  namely,  as  to  how  to  deal  with  a 
“factious”  man,  one  who  causes  trouble  in  the  church  be¬ 
cause  of  his  peculiar  beliefs.  On  the  one  hand,  he  is  not  to 
be  accused  lightly  of  insincerity,  nor  to  be  hastily  excom- 


156 


TITUS 


Titus  3 :  1-11 


municated;  on  the  other  hand,  he  is  not  to  be  treated  with 
such  apparent  approval  as  to  strengthen  his  position.  He 
should  be  solemnly  warned  and  admonished,  but  the  time 
may  come  when  further  argument  is  useless  and  fellowship 
impossible.  Differences  of  belief,  in  the  body  of  profess¬ 
ing  Christians,  create  situations  which  require  the  exercise 
of  both  charity  and  courage.  Undoubtedly  the  Church 
must  administer  such  discipline  as  is  necessary  to  guard 
against  corrupt  teaching,  yet  every  act  must  be  inspired 
by  love.  All  suspicion  and  misinterpretation  and  intoler¬ 
ance  and  bigotry  must  be  avoided,  and  only  such  a  course 
pursued  as  seems  certain  to  reflect  credit  and  honor  upon 
the  name  of  Christ. 


Titus  3:  12-15 


CONCLUSION 


157 


III.  Conclusion.  Ch.  3:  12-15 

12  When  I  shall  send  Artemas  unto  thee,  or  Tychicus,  give 
diligence  to  come  unto  me  to  Nicopolis;  for  there  I  have  de¬ 
termined  to  winter.  13  Set  forward  Zenas  the  lawyer  and 
Apollos  on  their  journey  diligently,  that  nothing  be  wanting 
unto  them.  14  And  let  our  people  also  learn  to  maintain  good 
works  for  necessary  uses,  that  they  be  not  unfruitful. 

15  All  that  are  with  me  salute  thee.  Salute  them  that  love 
us  in  faith. 

Grace  be  with  you  all. 

The  concluding  verses  of  the  epistle  are  brief  and  per¬ 
sonal.  First  of  all  is  the  summons  to  Titus  to  make  all 
possible  haste  to  meet  Paul  at  Nicopolis.  Which  city  of 
that  name  is  meant,  it  is  not  possible  to  affirm,  but  prob¬ 
ably  it  was  the  place  of  that  name  in  Epirus.  There  Paul 
had  “determined  to  winter,”  and  he  desired  the  help  and 
companionship  of  his  faithful  friend,  Titus.  The  latter, 
however,  was  not  to  leave  until  either  Artemas  or  Tychicus 
arrived  to  continue  the  work  in  Crete,  where  Titus  was  not 
acting  as  a  bishop  or  permanent  officer  of  the  church,  but 
evidently  in  a  temporary  capacity  as  a  delegate  of  the 
apostle. 

As  to  Artemas,  we  have  no  further  knowledge;  but  as 
Tychicus  was  sent  a  little  later  to  Ephesus,  II  Tim.  4:12, 
it  is  possible  that  the  former  was  finally  chosen  to  act  for 
the  time  as  chief  pastor  in  Crete. 

In  the  second  place,  Paul  commends  two  traveling  mis¬ 
sionaries  who  are  on  their  way  to  Crete  and  who  possibly 
were  the  bearers  of  this  letter  to  Titus.  These  were  “Zenas 
the  lawyer  and  Apollos.”  As  to  the  former  we  know 
nothing  more,  not  even  whether  he  was  an  expert  in  Roman 
law  or  a  “scribe”  instructed  in  the  law  of  Moses. 

With  Apollos  we  are  rather  familiar  from  the  reference 
in  First  Corinthians  and  The  Acts.  He  was  the  eloquent 
and  learned  Alexandrian  whom  Priscilla  and  Aquila  in- 


158 


TITUS 


Titus  3:  12-15 


structed  when  in  Ephesus,  and  whom  a  special  party  of 
Christians  later  claimed  as  their  leader  in  the  church  at 
Corinth.  These  two  friends  Titus  is  urged  to  “set  forward 
. .  .on  their  journey  diligently,”  which  would  seem  to  mean 
not  only  that  they  were  to  be  greeted  cordially  and  to  be 
shown  generous  hospitality,  but  also  that  they  were  to  be 
provided  possibly  with  companions  and  even  with  funds, 
for  “nothing”  was  to  be  “wanting  unto  them.”  By  simi¬ 
lar  kindness,  at  least  similar  in  its  generous  provision,  the 
messengers  of  Christ  should  be  “set  forward”  to-day 
“that  nothing  be  wanting  unto  them.” 

In  the  third  place,  Titus  is  to  urge  the  Christians  in 
Crete,  whom  Paul  calls  “our  people,”  to  “learn  to  main¬ 
tain  good  works  for  necessary  uses.”  Possibly  this  is  in 
connection  with  the  help  of  Zenas  and  Apollos.  The  self¬ 
ish  Cretans  might  plead  too  great  poverty  to  have  a  part 
in  aiding  missionaries.  They  are  to  be  trained,  therefore, 
to  engage  in  honest  occupations,  both  for  their  own  sup¬ 
port  and  in  order  that  they  may  be  able  to  have  a  sub¬ 
stantial  part  in  Christian  enterprises  and  thus  to  be  “not 
unfruitful.” 

The  mention  of  these  names,  some  so  familiar  in  the 
writings  of  Paul  and  some  so  new,  indicate  that  we  have 
here  the  work  of  no  forger  but  an  authentic  letter  from  the 
hand  of  the  great  apostle. 

The  instruction  to  the  Christians  of  Crete,  together  with 
the  plural  form  of  the  benediction  which  follows  the  closing 
salutations,  indicates  that  the  message  of  this  letter  was 
intended  not  merely  for  Titus,  but  also  for  all  pastors,  and 
indeed  through  them  for  all  the  flock  of  Christ  in  all  ages 
and  lands.  For  them,  too,  is  the  benediction  and  the 
prayer:  “Grace  be  with  you  all.” 


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